


Out of the darkness

by RoyalChrod



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Lawyer Viktor, M/M, Original Character Death(s), Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-09-24
Packaged: 2018-10-07 18:09:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 18
Words: 72,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10366434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoyalChrod/pseuds/RoyalChrod
Summary: “Viktor” he heard, just before his hand touched the doorknob. He turned his head, and faced an expression he’d seen Yakov do hundreds of times before. Grave, composed yet taut; his professional facet.“Yes?”“Do not get involved. Don’t forget that.”Somehow, Viktor knew those two harmless sentences were going to be the end of him.He needed caffeine.When alpha lawyer Viktor Nikiforov is given the case of omega Katsuki Yuuri, accused of second-degree murder, he wasn't expecting the emotional turmoil he was currently dragged into. However, the more involved he gets, new pieces of evidence and facts are revealed, and Viktor begins to realize that nothing is what it seems.The only thing he know for certain, is that his client got out of a hellhole just to fall into another.





	1. The case

Let’s get one thing straight; Viktor was the perfect man for any case.

Anyone would be amazed about how many of the lawyers would have run a mile if it meant getting a job. A couple of them said it to Viktor’s face, but he was left unfazed. It didn’t bother him, not for a second. All he felt was the repugnant taste in his mouth when the challenging alpha pheromones reached his nose, but he wasn’t even sorry.

Some of them were just pure instinct (your typical big scary alpha) and would usually turn down the high-profile gigs, the high-stakes ones – too much media crap, they said, and too much fallout if you lost on the stand. Viktor didn’t do that kind of negativity. Overall, he took many cases (and won them all, but who was he to brag), yet he only took those where he thought the defended didn’t deserve the sentence he was getting.

It may have something to do with the fact that him -an alpha with enough reputation to run a whole mafia with the amount of contacts and resources he had- outsmarting his fellow alpha and beta co-workers with just the necessary words his brain could supply, without breaking a sweat. Or maybe it was just his sense of justice.

Yet when this case came, he knew -from the sound it made when it hit the front desk- that is was a big one. All the lawyers in the firm knew it. The basic claim came straight to the common room, and it was passed around until someone took it for themselves. So, when the head attorney Yakov Feltsman stuck his head around the door of the common room, pointed at him, snapped “Viktor, my office” and vanished, he knew.

Viktor looked around the room, and caught the stares of most of his co-workers. His heart-beat had picked up, and he could sniff a bit of excitement on himself. It had been a long time -too long- since one of these had come his way.

When he entered the small office in the corner of the floor, Viktor gulped. His second hint that he was up for some shit, was the posture his old alpha boss had. He was up behind his desk, with his hands on his trouser pockets, rolling up and down on the balls of his feet. This case had pumped up his pheromone levels enough that he wouldn’t fit in his chair, and Viktor could smell it.

He stayed where he was when Viktor closed the door behind him, sucking his teeth and rereading the call sheet on his desk.

“You working on anything right now, Viktor?” he said, loosing no time and going straight to the point.

“Just reading over some contract of terms and conditions for that tech company. Nothing major.” He answered, shrugging. “It’ll take a week to go over it, give or take.”

“Could someone else finish that up?”

“Not a problem.”

Yakov nodded and kept reading. He liked people to ask. It showed respect and acknowledgement of who’s boss, and alphas lived for that. And since he was in fact Viktor’s boss, he complied.

“Did something come in, sir?”

“Do you know Lipedrov?”

“Haven’t heard of it.”

“Neither had I. It’s one of those old places; up north, far from the highway. Used to be an area full of military camps.” Yakov put the sheet on his desk once more and looked at Viktor in the eye. “And by tonight the whole country would have heard of it.”

Viktor had nothing else to say than, “This is a bad one.”

Yakov laid one heavy palm on the sheet, like he was holding it down. He said, “Elderly man, retired army doctor, loved by the community, shot in his own house with his own gun. Suspect’s a male, not giving a statement, yet it all looks like a burglary gone terribly wrong. He’s risking thirty years.”

He left it for a moment, listening to the small tremors it sent through the air. Confused, Viktor spoke, “Is there anyone left to defend, Yakov?”

Yakov lowered his head and sighed, crumbling the paper on his hand a little with the effort. Viktor grimaced when a foul and bitter smell reached his nostrils. Anguish, rage.

Yakov was mad.

“Yakov?”

“The burglar. He’s the client whose lawyer is being requested by the cops.”

Viktor frowned. “Wait, he didn’t ask for one himself? With thirty years… Hell, why are the cops requesting a lawyer in the first place?”

“The suspect’s an omega, Viktor.”

Out of nowhere, Viktor was on edge. He could smell his own share of pheromones being released into the room, spreading and merging with Yakov’s own. He thanked god the window was open.

Viktor couldn’t get to make his mind stop his train of thoughts. He was aware omegas were by no mean weak or completely submissive, his own brother’s spitfire being proof of it. However, it was hard to believe that even with their biologically conditioned nurturing instinct -born to protect and love their progeny-, they would be capable of murdering someone just because. It seemed improbable, unnatural. And yet, someone had done exactly that, and was now in need of a lawyer.

Somehow, Viktor found himself thinking about mothers who abused their children, and realized that, even if it was rare, an omega could be perfectly capable of such a crime. It was the same logic.

It didn’t do much to ease his nerves though. “They’re giving thirty years to an omega?” Viktor asked in disbelief. “What has he said about it?”

“That’s the worst part. He’s not saying anything. He had already dropped when the police caught him and no one can get him out of omega space.”

“Fucking hell.” Viktor muttered.

“Fucking hell indeed. I don’t know much about it, yet, only got the preliminary file over there.” Yakov said, starting to pace around the room. Viktor stared, trying to distract his mind from the foul smell that was his own anger.

But he couldn’t, not when he realized what a haze this case was. It seemed like you regular theft slash murder case where someone shot some other fella without wanting to. Yet the fact an omega had done such a thing, and that he couldn’t even defend himself was disturbing to the point of madness.

“I want you to consider this case. Study it, get as much information as you can.” Yakov stopped pacing and locked his gaze on Viktor once more. “No one is telling you to accept the case Viktor, but I smell something fishy, and I know you do too.”

Viktor nodded. “When’s the first hearing?”

“Two days. The omega is in a holding cell right now, waiting for trial.” Yakov said, taking the sheet into his hands and grabbing another folder on the way. He started approaching Viktor with the files extended towards him. “Go and try to get something out of the omega, we’re on a preliminary stage right now, so you can ask without needing to accept the case. Remember, we just want to test the waters.” Viktor nodded once more, taking the folder into his hands. “Even if it’s just a reduction of jail time, Viktor. Consider everything, don’t leave loose strings.”

“Just like always, Yakov.” Viktor smirked. “It’s alright, I know what to do.”

“And yet you still managed to forget going to that case hearing all those years ago.” Viktor flinched, but Yakov just smirked at him and patted his shoulder. “Ease up, boy. I trust you to make a good decision.”

Viktor breathed out a relieved sigh when the calming pheromones reached his nose. He hadn’t noticed he was so tense, but the slight pain coming from his stiff shoulders lessened. Grateful for the reassurance, he took a deep breath and exhaled, managing to get his mind clear again.

“Thanks, boss.” He said, “I’ll be going now. Got a lot of stuff to do in two days.”

His boss nodded at him, and Viktor started to go towards the door behind him.

“Viktor” he heard, just before his hand touched the doorknob. He turned his head, and faced an expression he’d seen Yakov do hundreds of times before. Grave, composed yet taut; his professional facet.

“Yes?”

“Don’t get involved. Don’t forget that.”

Somehow, Viktor knew those two harmless sentences were going to be the end of him.

He needed caffeine.

 

* * *

 

 

Turns out the case was a hellhole, and Viktor just had to wait two hours for mayhem to rise.

He was having a coffee in his favorite place, just a few blocks away from his office, and reading over the file of the case assigned to him, when some chattering from across the room caught his attention.

“…an omega. Who would have thought?” he had heard a woman on the other end of the booth say. A beta, judging by the scent. His ears perked up, all attention on his files lost.

Some other person scoffed. “Didn’t you know? Society gives them everything they need. They provide with free healthcare and protection campaigns. But it’s not that surprising that some are not satisfied with it!”

“But murder? Over what, a few hundred dollars? The poor man couldn’t have had that much of a pension, being a retired soldier and all…” at that, Viktor raised his head from his work and stared at them.

The other woman had sighed in what sounded like disappointment.

“Let’s just hope that monster rots in prison.”

Viktor had stopped listening to them then, something catching his attention on the television hanging from the end of the booth. On screen, a group of policemen were escorting another person in between them towards a van. Even on the other side of the screen, Viktor could tell they were handling him roughly.

He flinched when the camera focused on the man’s face, showing an inexpressive look. Hazy eyes, slightly open mouth; an omega in serious need of comfort was the only description he could come up with. His inner alpha whined at the display, his stomach dropping when he caught a glimpse of the headline.

_Elder slain in peaceful Lipedrov’s horror. Omega gone feral._

The case had gained popularity, and his still-not client got haters already.

The news moved on to some interviews of people sounding equally horrified and mad at the turn of events. Another lawyer gave a lengthy talk about omega’s immunity against the law, and how that could lead to situations where death happened. An omega’s right supporter also showed her disbelief on how this could happen, and condemned her fellow omega to a terrible stay in prison -she implicitly said she hoped he’d get raped repeatedly in there, Viktor could catch it- for giving such an awful example of the omega dynamic.

He gulped down the coffee he was holding, but his eyes were kept transfixed by the images he was seeing. The news block then covered all the general information that was written in the folder of the preliminary report, and Viktor cringed when he realized that shown on television, the scene looked even worse than it was.

What Viktor had was no different to what was being showed on screen. A neighbor had heard the gun being fired multiple times and called the police. The officers discovered the body of alpha Dmitri Denisovich, his head blasted open and his own gun in his hands right at the entrance of the kitchen. They found the omega running through the woods surrounding the secluded house, already in omega space. When one of the policemen shouted at him to stop running and throw himself into the floor, the omega didn’t even respond. The report said the boy had fallen face first onto the floor, his hands over the back of his head when one of the policemen caught him. They cuffed him, held him up by his arms, and realized the state the guy was in.

The report stated no sign of forced entry, but since it was such a peaceful neighborhood, the back door in the kitchen might have been open from the beginning. There were some signs of struggle between the alpha and omega, possibly over control of the gun, which explained the multiple shots the neighbor stated he’d heard. Only one had reached the alpha’s head, being it the cause of death.

On the part where the officer in charge of the report speculated about the reasons behind the gruesome scene, he wrote that everything pointed to a burglary gone wrong, just like Viktor had suspected. However, the report also declared that nothing inside the house seemed out of place. The officer believed the reason was that the elder alpha had heard the intruder come inside his house, and trotted down the stairs with his gun in hand before anything could be taken.

Viktor noticed the news program referred to the kid as just “the omega”, because no one had been able to identify the kid. Neither his face nor his fingerprints were on the system. He was a nobody.

The news, obviously invented every gruesome detail they could. However, when it started showing the deceased alpha’s oh-so-honorable life, Viktor had stopped watching. He didn’t want to be influenced by the media. He knew it was hard, but if he went into the courthouse thinking his client was a lowlife, the case was already lost.

Gulping down the last of his coffee, Viktor took out his notepad and began writing. Messy handwriting soon filled line after line, his mind working faster than his hand, making it hard to follow. Somehow, half of his notes ended up being written in English when he couldn’t find the words he needed in Russian. But who was he to complain, he just needed to write this before he forgot.

That way, when he got into his car to go towards the place where they were keeping the omega, he could fix his mindset into something he could work with.

The main thing he focused on was the fact that the entrance wasn’t forced. He could use that as his main argument to claim self-defense. An unfinished business, some debt or just an argument could have brought Dmitri to call the omega into his house, and planned an assassination gone wrong.

But Viktor shook his head when his mind had started to wander into theories and speculations. Those were useless up on the stand, he could just use the facts. But for that, he needed the omega to speak to him. That would prove a huge problem all on its own.

He was already at the central police station when he forced himself to calm down again, or he would make his car reek of anxiousness.

The main entrance in the station was crowded with reports wanting to get a statement out of the officers, and Viktor mentally slapped himself when he realized he should have gone in by the back entrance. The reporters caught sight of him in a second, and in the other, they were already bombarding him with questions.

“Mr. Nikiforov, is the legendary lawyer participating in this case?”

“What are your thoughts about the crime, alpha?”

“What is Yakov Felstman’s firm’s side on the case?”

“Mr. Nikiforov! We have information that you’re taking the omega’s case as his defender. Is this true?"

He just ignored every single one of them, trying to keep his scent at bay.

Do not get involved. You can’t get involved, he thought, taking deep breaths through his mouth to avoid smelling the crowd’s merged scents.

Once he got close to the front doors, a pair of officers shielded him from the avalanche of reporters coming his way, and managed to get him inside safely.

He sighed in relief upon getting away from the multitude.

Viktor approached the front desk, then. He knew the guy there; a beta, partner of his brother’s boyfriend. He saw Viktor walking his way, and waved at him from behind a group of officers conversing in front of him. Viktor gave a small nod in acknowledgement.

“Hey Ivan. How’s work treating you?” Viktor asked, leaning a little on the desk.

“Not bad, can’t complain.” He said, but then grimaced. “Except for the load of reporters bombarding me with questions. They never shut up!”

Viktor laughed bitterly. It seemed everyone was getting their own share of fame because of this madness of a case.

“Figures you’d get some more attention now, kid. You’re in charge of all of the bad guys back there, and everyone loves a little gossip about their favorite Jack the Ripper.”

Ivan sighed in frustration, and Viktor couldn’t help but snicker. Deeming it enough conversation, Viktor went ahead and onto the point.

“Hey, do you have my next victim appointed somewhere over there? I was supposed to be given some time alone with him, uh” he glanced at his wristwatch, and mentally slapped himself “an hour ago.”

“Name?” the officer asked, taking a list into his hands.

Viktor bit his lip. “Fucking Justin Bieber, man. Have you seen the number of reporters outside?”

Ivan just laughed at him, closing the list he had taken into his hands and calling another fellow officer from his side.

“I’ll take him to John Doe’s cell. It’s his lawyer.” He told him, and Viktor scoffed.

“Not yet, Ivan. Preliminary hearing and all. Still need some time to think about it.”

Ivan rolled his eyes. “You’d better think it over well, legendary lawyer Nikiforov. This case’s hell on earth.”

“Couldn’t agree more on that.”

Viktor turned around to follow the officer into the cells of the station. Most were empty, except for a few drunkards here and there. It was the first-time Viktor had seen the station so peaceful – excepting the chaos that he had seen outside.

It bothered him that they had to go so deep into the station to get to the cell. These were mostly reserved to high-end criminals. It was by no mean place for an omega.

Upon reaching the end of the hall, Viktor was hit with an overwhelming sense of anger.

In the corner of the room was the last cell guarded by two officers, and huddled in the far back corner is a dark-haired omega shaking with fear. The boy clutched his arms and legs to his chest, his head curled down towards his knees, small sobs echoing through the room.

“Holy shit.” Viktor said, covering his mouth and nose. The stench of fear and panic made him want to gag.

"We have tried everything Viktor, the omega won’t budge.” Ivan begun. “Otabek tried to get in there but it just made things worse."

Viktor’s respect towards the officer could only grow. He knew the guy was not one to jump into conclusions easily, and he was grateful for the fact that he respected the innocent-until-proven-wrong rule that many used to forget.

However, seeing the poor omega hunched in there, in obvious need of some sort of comfort made his heart hurt. He looked like a lost child! Hell, when Viktor saw him on television he didn’t think the omega could’ve been older than twenty. Here he didn’t even appear fifteen! Viktor wanted to help him, take him into his arms and tell him everything was going to be okay, but Yakov’s words refrained him from doing so. It wasn’t his job to do that.

He sighed. He still needed the omega to talk to him.

"Give me a little space and get these guys away. Poor kid’s terrified of everything.” Ivan repeated his orders, and the two guards walked away from the cell. Ivan held open the cell gate for Viktor and closed it behind him.

Viktor slowly approached the boy, crouching to the floor and releasing calming pheromones in an attempt of subduing the omega. He could hear small whimpers coming from the boy as his body stiffened. Stopping two meters away from the omega and sitting on the floor not saying a word Viktor assessed the situation.

The omega was not responding to his pheromones. That enough made Viktor nervous, thinking about how deep in omega space the poor kid might be in. Viktor wasn’t sure if the omega was aware of his presence, but he realized he was indeed scaring him. When he attempted to move towards him, the boy presses himself closer to the corner behind him.

He couldn’t even see his face properly.

“Hey, omega” he whispered, but the omega recoiled to his words, banging his back on the wall with the force of his flinch.

Viktor bit his lip. He didn’t even know his name. Maybe that would have gotten him to listen. He still had his alpha voice, but knowing what a bad effect it could have on the kid, he decided against using it.

“Ivan” Viktor whispered, feeling a sharp prick on his chest when the omega flinched again.

“Yes, Viktor?” the beta answered from behind, his voice only a whisper.

“Did he try to harm Otabek when he came inside?”

The alpha didn’t even turn his head towards Ivan, his gaze only focusing on the omega in front of him while he waited for the answer.

“He didn’t want to touch him. Being an alpha and all, he thought his scent would frighten him.” Ivan responded. “But no. The kid didn’t do as much as tremble.”

Viktor frowned and set his thoughts straight. If he couldn’t get the omega to trust him, then Viktor could do nothing on his favor for the case. So, even if he might give the kid the scare of his life… Who was he even kidding? The kid had been the cause of someone’s death, indirect or not. Of course he’d been scared! And Viktor had nothing to lose, anyways.

He directed his voice to the kid once more.

“Omega, I’m going to hold you, okay?” he whispered, but the kid didn’t respond. “I’m moving closer.”

When he shuffled to move -the sound of fabric brushing fabric getting into Viktor’s ears- the kid whimpered. Stopping for a second, Viktor repeated his words with the same softness as before.

“You’ll be okay. I just need to get closer.” he said, and begun to move again.

The omega didn’t have anywhere to go, and soon Viktor had managed to get in front of him, blocking all routes of escape. The alpha knew this strategy sucked, but he needed to try it. He needed to try and see if the omega was responsive enough to give a statement – or anything for the matter.

What he didn’t expect was the sudden tackle he received from his front.

He fell back onto his butt, startled. Viktor heard Ivan and the guards getting into position, and it took a moment to realize what had happened. However, when he saw the omega curled protectively on his chest, clinging to his shirt like a lifeline, his heart did a weird flip. Viktor raised his hand, signaling the officers to stop doing whatever they were doing.

“Viktor!” he heard Ivan exclaim, and the omega flinched in his arms. Viktor’s own hands found their way around the ball of limbs and held tightly.

A pair of honey colored eyes - hazy and unfocused and it pained Viktor to the core -, gazed back at him from his chest. Viktor felt a lump in his throat, and for a second he forgot how to breath.

What he saw in there was innocence. Pure and raw and it was pleading for someone to save it.

“It’s okay. It’s alright. Everything’s under control over here.”

Yeah, right, he told himself.

If everything were under control, like he had so clearly said, then Viktor wouldn’t be such a mess.

He’d fucked up, because upon seeing those eyes and more accidentally than in purpose, Viktor had gotten involved.

Yet, he had a resolution.

He was going to take the case, whatever it took from him. And Yakov was going to kill him.

He needed caffeine.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First fanfic guys!  
> This is just an idea I got, and had wanted to share it for a long time.  
> I think I'm going to write two or three more chapters with what I've thought so far.  
> Let me know what you think and thank you for reading!


	2. The victim

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, guys. I can't believe the response the first chapter had! You're awesome!  
> I couldn't wait any more to write the second chapter. It's still kind of introductory but it supplies some more information about the case, the AU and Viktor's point of view.  
> Hope you like it!

Viktor couldn’t think of a time he’d ever felt as lost as now. He was surprised when he found himself thinking of calling Yakov for help, but he wasn’t prepared for the scold he was sure he’d receive. For his own credit, he knew just how careless he’d been; he just didn’t need someone else telling him that.

But what else could he do? He was alone with his thoughts while he waited for the prosecutor and the judge of his case to arrive to the courthouse. The preliminary hearing was in two days, but he needed a session with the other two parties as soon as possible. Thank god, the two other men were so professional that they didn’t hesitate to come when Viktor called for a meeting.

The reason for this, though? Viktor’s client couldn’t speak. He was an omega in a drop so deep that it seemed dangerous. Luckily, Viktor had taken his responsibilities as an alpha very seriously when he presented, wasting no time to take every course he could about omega biology, psychology and well-being. He knew omegas were at a biological disadvantage when it came to mental stability, needing to be safely put and taken out of omega space to maintain a healthy lifestyle. And so, he had his certificate that deemed him capable of helping omegas that didn’t have a legal guardian and were not in a state to be alone.

Again, maybe the reason he became a lawyer was because of his need to help others.

What he’d been considering for the past hours was the possibility of taking the omega into his care temporarily. At least until he’d gotten him to talk. It was the omega’s right to be kept safe, and it was morally and ethically incorrect to be kept in a cell to suffer alone, murderer or not.

Viktor had gone home to get all his support program diplomas so that his plan would at least have some solid bases. He’d been listening to his favorite radio station when his case was featured. They started it off stating that the legendary defender Viktor Nikiforov had taken the case of the rogue omega that murdered the poor alpha (who apparently had been a bestowed war hero, just great) Dmitri Denisovich, and had then proceeded to insult the omega and express the disbelief of people on how this could happen. They hated the omega, wanted him to rot in jail, and no one even cared about the fact that the kid was suffering and unable to help himself. The presenter even read a comment sent by some listener that believed the omega had purposely gone under so people would take pity on him.

Viktor didn’t know if the judge would let him keep the omega at home to help him. Hell, he didn’t even think the prosecution would let him get away as easily as he’d hoped.

His enemy on court was an alpha he’d only met once before; Philip Ignatieff, a ruthless prosecutor who’d been said to emotionally detach from all the cases he took, no matter if the culprit had been found innocent at first. Viktor had admired the guy when he first started with law, but at the same time feared he wouldn’t accept Viktor’s plead for self-defense.

A door being shut took his thoughts away. He’d worry about his capabilities as a lawyer some other time. Right now, he needed to focus and get that legal guardianship permit.

 

* * *

 

The room was now closed from the inside, being there only Viktor, Ignatieff, the judge to his case and a pair of officers guarding the doors.

Both defender and prosecutor stood when the judge took a seat. Viktor stared at the old man while the judge ruffled some papers on his desk, trying hard not to look at Ignatieff.

“The court addresses the case of Dmitri Denisovich, for a lack of the suspects identity. Defender Nikiforov, please rise and present your posture.”

“Good afternoon, Your Honor.” Viktor mentally pats himself for not stuttering. He’d started well, already beginning to smell the tinge of excitement coming from his own body. “As you know by the report the police sent, my client is currently unable to take part in any kind of legal procedure because of an omega drop. Your Honor, considering the lack of a personal identity or information my client could possibly give to this case, I’d like to request a guardianship over him. I have the papers that state my certification with me.”

The judge hummed in response, giving a pointed look to Viktor before averting his gaze.

“Prosecution?” he asked, voice gruff and serious.

Viktor dared look at his adversary for the first time since he entered the room. On his face was a look of pure confidence, smug as an alpha of his caliber. His features were rough and full, contrasting completely to Viktor’s own sharp and slim.

“Your Honor, the accused is not to be released on public, for which he might hurt someone else, or even himself.”

Viktor smirked. “Objection, supposition of future events.” He stated, as calmly as he could with how easy the other had made a mistake.

“Sustained, proceed.” The judge said, and Viktor counted a small victory when Ignatieff’s brows lifted.

“He should remain behind bars for the totality of his case. Omega space is too unpredictable, considering we don’t even know who he is. There is no written proof, no medical reports.” He finished, looking at Viktor for the response.

“Yet, he is in no state to be harmful. I tried approaching him earlier today, and all I got was a touch-starved omega wanting comfort.”

“Any witnesses on that, Mr. Nikiforov?” the judge asked, and Viktor grabbed a flashdrive from his pocket.

“Three police officers saw me. I have the recording and another of one of the officers trying to approach my client.” The judge nodded and Viktor plugged the flash drive into the computer on his desk. Then, he connected his computer to the projector on the room and played the footage.

Upon watching it, the judge hummed once more. “The evidence is accepted. Mr. Ignatieff, proceed.”

“Although there is a lack of eyewitnesses, the accused can’t be treated as innocent, Your Honor.” Viktor frowned when Ignatieff grabbed one of the many folders on his desk. “His fingerprints were found on the murder weapon, meaning his participation on the crime is not being supposed. It’s fact.”

“Yet there is no proof of my client ever pulling the trigger. His fingerprints were only found on the barrel of the gun.” Viktor counter stated.

“Participation enough and the fact that he is the only one alive accounts for second hand murder. Although the case is currently under further investigation, it has been proved that the omega had something to do with this case. He can’t leave a federal compound.” Ignatieff smiled smugly at Viktor. He had a point.

Viktor could only huff in annoyance.

“Defense?” he heard the judge call.

“It is not right nor legal to keep an omega from getting help, Your Honor.”

“Objection” Viktor heard, and he felt his heart stopping for a second when he looked towards the other alpha.

“On what foundation, Mr. Ignatieff?” the judge asked.

“Unnecessary dynamic and emotional resources used.” Viktor smelled the nervousness on him while he waited for the judge to give his response. He felt his mind closing with the possibility that maybe his plan wouldn't work, and that they wouldn't let him proceed to explain why he had made that "mistake". It had slipped from his mouth, he hadn’t used the term he wanted to, but the idea had plagued his mind when he started to run out of arguments. He used the few seconds in which the judge considered the objection to take a deep breath and gather his thoughts.

He was of no use to the omega if he thought he’d been defeated already. Who was he even kidding! he thought. The legendary lawyer Viktor Nikiforov didn’t go down without a fight.

"Defense, broaden your statement." And Viktor could practically smell his relief when he heard Ignatieff growl from his desk.

This was his chance.

"Yes, Your Honor. I used the dynamic denomination to introduce an argument." He paused for a second, grabbing one of the books he had brought with him from home. He opened it with practiced ease and began to read. "" _Every omega has the right to be given help in any moment of need, be it consensual or not, in which case it can only be imparted by capacitated alphas or betas. It is illegal and punishable by law if a group or an individual prevent the omega to get the comfort it needs_.” Viktor closed the book resoundingly. He loved some drama on this boring sessions. “Omega rights act and biological implications in law, 1999. Still valid and used to this day.”

“Yet the clause explicitly states the procedure regarding legal action. It is permitted to keep an omega in custody, even if it means going through omega space during the process.”

Oh, Viktor was more than aware of that. He just needed his adversary to take that step in the right direction. “In which the omega is allowed to request aid to its legal guardian.” He intercepted, sharpening his eyes while looking at Ignatieff’s frustrated face. “My client is unable to request help, and we have been unable to reach a legal emotional support of his choice because of that matter. It is, by consequence, illegal to keep him locked in a cell.”

“Enough, Mr. Nikiforov. Argument accepted by the court. Objection overruled.” Viktor resisted the urge to jump in his place. This was good, really good to be honest. The judge raised his hand, then. “I believe we’re already reaching a close to this short session. Mr. Nikiforov, anything to add that might have been missed during the discussion?”

“Yes, Your Honor. Now, even if participation was proved, need I remind the prosecution about the fact that he’s innocent until proven guilty? There’s no murder intent either, yet, because he can’t speak.” Ignatieff’s face fell, and Viktor took the opportunity to strike with everything he got. “IF I get a permit and IF I get him to talk, then we wouldn’t be just helping an omega in need; we would be a little surer whether my client is guilty or not.”

“Objection, supposition” Viktor stopped abruptly and looked at the judge for confirmation. However, he just waved his hand absentmindedly.

“Overruled, supposition stated and remarked.” He said, and Viktor felt himself relaxing for a second until he remembered he should be as alert as possible right now. “Prosecution, anything to add?”

Yet, alertness disappeared completely when the smell of threat coming from Ignatieff vanished.

"No, Your Honor."

“Good.” He said, banging his gavel on the stand. “This court has decided to supply alpha Viktor Nikiforov a legal permit of temporal guardianship over the omega who he is defending. It is solely for health purposes and evidence gathering. Also, the omega is to remain restrained as to not present a threat to either Mr. Nikiforov or himself.”

Viktor couldn’t help the smile forming on his lips.

He’d won for now.

“Court is adjoined. Please let us meet here in two days for the public court appearance.”

He was about to leave when Ignatieff appeared behind him. Viktor startled when the man touched his shoulder, but managed to keep his flinch at bay. The prosecutor smelled like lingering frustration, but apart from that, he wasn’t threatening at all. Though Viktor imitated his composed posture to hide his nerves. It was the first time he’d even felt like that in a hearing.

Still, Viktor knew he’d aced it. He hadn’t expected Ignatieff to acknowledge that too.

“Good job. It was a really nice argumentation.” The other alpha said, offering his hand for a handshake.

Viktor stared at it for a second and then extended his own arm. Who was he to downright reject this peace offering on the first meeting?

“Thank you. And you too, Ignatieff. You had me on a tightrope back there.” Viktor said, his voice sincere as he shook hands with him.

“Oh, please. Call me Philip outside of the court, Viktor.” he said, returning the smile from before. “And I knew Yakov was proud of this particular lawyer he’d hired right after college, but I clearly wasn’t prepared for you.”

“Ah, that old man. He lives to brag.” Viktor responded, trying hard - and failing – not to get comfortable around this guy. Sure, they may be coworkers in a way, but for this case, he was his enemy.

Ignatieff managed to get him uncomfortable again in a matter of seconds, though.

“There’s talent in you, Viktor. A good future.” His face turned somber, and now Viktor could smell a tinge of threat. His shoulders tightened in response. “But you have to be careful with this case. One mistake and I swear I won’t let it go until your credibility is completely lost. Just because I admire you doesn’t mean I will go easy on you.”

“Then likewise, Philip.” Viktor answered, smiling darkly. “I have no intent to lose.”

Ignatieff nodded firmly and promptly announced, “See you in court.”. Then, he walked away with his briefcase in hand. Just then Viktor had the chance to let out a shuddering breath.

He was in so much trouble that he could barely contain his excitement. Whiffs of his emotion reached his nose and he sighed once more. He was like a child who’d been given a new toy, for god’s sake. Reality was so much more different than that, though. He now had an omega to take care of – if he just omitted the fact that he had to defend him from one of the most successful prosecutors of the field so he wouldn’t rot in jail, it wasn’t that bad.

Speaking of which, Viktor reminded himself, he needed to take his order and get the omega out of that cell as soon as possible. His chest ached at the thought of him spending even one more second of imprisonment than needed.

With new resolutions and a gist of a bunch of unconcreted ideas, he marched to go and get his written permit. On the way there, he switched on his phone again, grimacing upon seeing the multiple messages that appeared on his screen. Most were from Yakov, but his little brother had also had the need of contacting him. As much as he loved the little ball of anger, Viktor decided against responding to any of the texts. He didn’t have any time for it.

He considered giving Yakov a call, but let go of the idea as soon as he caught a glimpse of the hour.

So, instead, he turned off his phone. He’d deal with it later.

 

* * *

 

 

The compound was flooded with even more reporters than in the morning. Viktor had planned on going in through the back, but it was equally crowded.

"Shit..." he muttered under his breath. How these guys managed to live by working in between other hundreds of reporters every day, pushed and squeezed, he had no idea. He wasn't going to be able to take the omega out as easily as he desired.

Viktor chose to get out of his car and get it over with. As soon as the omega was safe at home, everything would have been worth it. He never got used to being pushed around by the mass of people.

He was proud of his ability to tune out the squeaky voices and smells of sweaty and pushy betas, alphas and omegas on the further back. And most of all, he was thankful when the same procedure than the morning occurred: Otabek and Ivan appeared from the front doors, and quickly and effectively hauled Viktor inside of the station, escorting him through the people as if they were plowers taking snow out of the way. Viktor found the resemblance amusing.

"Thank you, guys." He said, safely inside once more.

"No problem Viktor. Man, those guys are a real nuisance." Ivan answered, nodding at the doors.

Viktor looked up to meet Otabek's eyes and frowned. The other alpha looked even grimmer than usual.

"Otabek?" The alpha sighed, and Viktor suddenly smelled anger mixed with annoyance.

"What have you gotten yourself carried into, Viktor?" He asked, brushing his hair back with exasperation. "The news are all about you and this shitty case, man." He said. "You took custody of the omega? What were you thinking?"

Viktor suddenly felt both furious and confused. "How the hell did they get that information?" He exclaimed, looking back at the doors, ready to pounce. "I swear I'm going to file an injunction for privacy violation."

"It's already done. There's nothing you can do to keep that information at bay." Ivan supplied soberly.

"Viktor, the omega is not in a favorable position. If something goes wrong, you'd..."

"I know, I know. I'm aware of the risks. I can take him to a hospital if necessary."

"No. I'm not worried about the omega." Otabek interrupted. "I'm worried about you."

Viktor frowned, looking at him like he had grown another head.

"He won't hurt me." He said. "He can't. He's in omega space."

“But you don’t know that, Viktor!” Otabek exclaimed, and Viktor’s nostril flared with the amount of anger they were perceiving. He hunched his shoulders, standing as straight as he could and pulling his head forward. But, at last, he composed himself; he was not going to attack his brother’s boyfriend just because he was mad at his words.

Viktor shook his head and relaxed his arms, looking up at Otabek, who was still freely emitting his pheromones. “Otabek, please calm down.”

Otabek blinked once, twice, and finally gave up with a growl. “Fuck, Viktor! Do you know how mad Yuri was at you?”

“I’m aware, he called me.” But he hadn’t answered. He couldn’t do that now.

“Then what? Are you just going to ignore him?”

“I am.” Viktor answered calmly. “I am, and no one is making me change my mind. I am helping this omega, you all want it or not.”

Otabek shook his head. He then turned his head away from Viktor and spoke to Ivan. “Grab the keys and call the others. Viktor’s serious this time.”

“You owe me fifty, Beka!” the beta said back with a smile and proceeded to do what his partner had told him.

Viktor couldn’t keep his laugh for any longer, managing to snicker a little before completely losing it. Otabek rolled his eyes.

“You’re an idiot.”

“And you betted against me, Beka. Don’t know if that makes you more or less stupid, though.” Viktor answered, smirking.

“Whatever.” Otabek said, and the other alpha smiled once more.

“You’re copying Yuri!”

He just huffed in response. Viktor knew these guys would support him until the end, but that didn’t keep them from questioning his choices. He knew what he was going through was dangerous and impulsive, but he had no desire of backing up now. He wasn’t lying on that.

Two other officers joined them on the way to the cells. Two alphas he didn’t know, but from their faces Viktor knew he didn’t quite like them. The walk downstairs was a silent one, but they didn’t let Viktor get to the last set of doors. He could already smell the panic and fear of the omega when he was stopped by one of the other officers and told to wait.

“Judge’s orders, Viktor.” Otabek had explained, holding up a set of chain-like ropes and cuffs. “The omega is to be restrained 24/7, there’s no way round it.”

“How heavy are they?” Viktor asked, frowning at the device. His anger begun resurfacing again when he saw them, but Otabek was right. If he wanted the omega home with him, he needed to follow the rules.

“Two kilograms for the whole set. It follows the regulations.”

Regulations or not, Viktor couldn’t wait for his client to be healthy again so they could take them off.

He couldn’t see nor hear when they put the chains on the omega, but, after no longer than three minutes, Otabek and Ivan came through the door with the omega in between them, and Viktor felt his stomach churn.

The poor omega looked even more miserable than in the morning. His black hair fell onto his eyes, and he hung his limbs as if they were too heavy for him to handle. His legs were thin and wobbly, barely managing to maintain the omega up. Viktor wasn’t sure if the kid could walk at all, considering how strong the grip on his arms was; Otabek and Ivan could have easily been lifting him. However, the omega was indeed taking hesitant steps as long as the room the chains gave him.

He looked like a criminal already, with the chain connecting his hands and feet together and …was that a collar on him?

“Goddamit…” Viktor muttered, taking one step forward, his desire of wanting to caress the kid’s face too strong for him to handle. The officers stopped him short. “Hey!”

“Viktor, please let us handle him until we’re outside.” Ivan told him with a grim look.

The alpha was about to protest, but a look from Otabek told him not to. He reminded himself neither one of the guys were going to hurt the omega, so he made himself turn around and walk forward. He tried to ignore the smell of distress coming from the boy, but every time he breathed, he felt the need to turn back and cuddle him. It was a really hard walk back to the reception.

“Guys, grab the omega. Ivan and I will clear the way.” Otabek said, and the two other alphas nodded, taking their places. “Viktor, stay back.”

Viktor nodded and complied, bracing himself for the upcoming chaos. He looked back once, reassuring himself that the omega was right behind him. Everything was fine.

However, it seemed the world had a different idea.

When the doors opened, the mass of reporters avalanched in front and on the sides of the small party, blocking the way completely. Upon seeing the omega, the screams increased their intensity. Questions and statements were being shouted form left and right, and while Viktor would usually just ignore them, he couldn’t stop some of them from reaching his ears.

“Omega! Are you repented on your actions?”

“What were your motives for killing that man?”

“How does it feel to wreck a whole country for one selfish act?”

Something that surprised Viktor was that his own self-control wasn’t working as good as it usually did. Mics were shoved into his head, looking for his mouths and the answers it could provide: he was ablaze with anger, and many reporters sensed the threat of angry alpha and instead focused on the omega.

Halfway through, though, the kid fell, and so did the last of Viktor’s control.

He looked back the moment it happened, just in time to see the two officers trying to shield the omega from the crowd that appeared to fall onto them. The kid wasn’t moving, violent shivers wrecking his body from head to toe. Viktor could hear the gasps and sobs from where he was standing, transfixed on the image.

He sprang into action as soon as the kid lifted his head. Viktor was sure the reporters couldn’t have seen it, but the omega’s eyes were glistening with tears. Clouded and feverish, scrunched shut because of the brightness reaching them. He didn’t care about the cameras snapping pictures of them when he did, but he scooped the omega onto his arms and held tight. The kid didn’t respond, at all, and Viktor feared he’d fallen unconscious. His eyes were still trying to open to no avail.

“Come on, kid. I’m taking you out of here.”

With the omega safe in his arms and the four officers shielding them both, Viktor walked upfront. His car was just a few steps away, but he couldn’t stop thinking about the almost weightless lump latched to him.

Viktor opened the passenger side door and maneuvered the omega in. Otabek and Ivan were behind him, managing to keep the reporters as far back as they could. He then reached towards the seatbelt and put him over the kid. When he got to the driver’s side, he sent a meaningful nod towards Otabek and Ivan. The other alpha nodded back, and Viktor took his cue to leave the place.

The engine hummed to life, and the car began to move. Viktor saw the omega squirm and tuck his knees to his chest, shielding his head in the process. The alpha couldn’t even force himself to be mad at the dirt on the seat when he looked at him. This wasn’t right.

“It’s okay, omega. I got you. I’m going to help you, you’ll see.”

Oh, how Viktor wished his words made any sense to the guy.

This was such a mess; he didn’t even know where to start.


	3. Honey

Viktor had just stopped feeling the vibrations of the car when the omega began crying once more. Startled and hurting, Viktor was so desperate to be able to breath some fresh air again that he barely remembered closing the door softly. The smell of panic was overwhelming his senses.

He welcomed the air into his lungs as fervently as ever. The exhaustion in his mind began taking its toll on his body, he thought, looking through the car window at the omega. He breathed slowly for a minute and concentrated on the little form hunched on his car seat, fumbling uselessly with the heavy chains locking his arms and legs together. While Viktor knew he should take the kid inside as fast as he could, he was also aware that the smell of hurt and anxious and so very scared wasn’t exactly helping his own nervousness.

Viktor opened the passenger’s side and reached over to unbuckle the seatbelt. The omega was so out of it he didn’t even notice when Viktor hoisted him up, frowning at the lightness of the body he held. Two steps towards the front door and his skinny arms latched themselves onto the alpha’s shirt.

“Hey, buddy. You awake?” Viktor whispered softly, but received no response. The omega curled tighter and rested his head under Viktor’s neck, sniffing and starting to tremble once more in the alpha’s hold. His skin was cold to the touch. “Shh. You’re ok, we’re almost home.”

To say he hurried inside was an understatement. He unlocked the door to his home and was instantly greeted with the sight of his dog - a poodle named Makkachin who was adored by the alpha- running excitedly towards them.

“Makka! Back!” Viktor whispered harshly, and the mutt complied with so little grace that he managed to make the carpet under him crumble and drop a vase in the process. The omega flinched so hard in his arms at the sound of ceramic breaking, that Viktor’s hold weakened and he almost dropped the kid. The chains rattled along his body.

“It’s alright, it’s ok.” Viktor cooed, gently readjusting the omega so his nose was near Viktor’s neck one more. The alpha pheromones appeared to calm the kid down substantially.

Makkachin whined at the rejection, but then perked his ears up at the sound of the kid sniffling. Curious, she began following Viktor deeper into the house, but stopped abruptly when he reached his room and looked back at her.

“Makka, you can’t come in. We must be careful around this guy. He’s an omega, like Yuri.” Viktor was sure the dog wouldn’t understand a word he said as she began waving her tail amidst the seriousness of the situation, but it made him smile anyways. “I can’t have you sleeping in here anymore, girl. You’ll have to do with the couch.”

She did whine this time and tried to push her way inside, but Viktor closed the door. He heard her whine loudly and huff, but at last he heard her trotting down the hall. A chuckle left his mouth at her antics.

He heard a gasp then and, looking down, Viktor found himself staring into big, honey colored eyes. His face didn’t reveal any emotion, but form the way the omega’s eyelids were dropping, the alpha deduced he was exhausted.

“Here, kid. Stay put for a while.” He said, lowering the omega to the bed. His breath hitched when Viktor removed him from his arms, and then stayed trembling on top of the covers while Viktor went towards his closet.

He fetched one of his own cotton shirts and a pair of pajama pants that Yuri had forgotten there a while ago. Viktor knew his permit didn’t allow him to get the omega naked – unless of course he wanted to face a hefty fine and some time in jail -, but he couldn’t stand seeing him wearing only dirty and cheap rags. Omega’s were amazingly sensitive to touch, and Viktor wanted nothing more than to keep the omega comfortable and in a right headspace.

Viktor walked back to the omega and helped him up, maintaining him upright from his arms. The omega squirmed and trashed, but he was so weak Viktor could effortlessly keep him from dropping back down. He unhooked the chains from the omega’s cuffs, easily putting the new shirt on top of the other. Then, he carefully but effectively ripped the old piece of clothing from under, and gently pulled it away. Viktor then linked the chains back together, and the omega let out a sigh.

“You like that, huh?” Viktor whispered, smiling fondly.

The kid’s long dark hair was covering his forehead and part of his eyes, but Viktor was still able to see the yellowish-brown suns looking back at him - not really looking, he told himself. The kid shouldn’t be able to see him given the state he was in-. But the alpha found himself forgetting the task at hand for a second, getting lost in those eyes like a fly mesmerized by a light. Yeah, that sounded like it.

Or a bee attracted to honey. Did that even happen?

Honey. Yeah, it fitted his eyes.

However, Viktor reluctantly looked away. He’d not asked to take care of the omega for his own benefit and satisfaction. It was his job; he was the kid’s temporary legal guardian until his case – the case HE was defending – came to an end. Attached or not, Viktor couldn’t forget that.

First and foremost on his list, was to get the omega back to consciousness.

He repeated the same procedure on the omega’s pants, and when he was finally free of the itchy and dirty rags, the kid sighed contentedly.

“See? That’s much better.” Viktor watched with fascination when the kid started running his hands over the fabric, reaching down and taking long whiffs before moving on to another patch. The chains limited his movements, but neither the sound nor the coldness of the objects stopped him from curling up on himself and exploring the different textures.

He wasn’t wearing socks. In fact, the alpha was confused as to why he hadn’t worn anything to cover his feet. A closer examination revealed cuts and blisters in various stages of healing, but Viktor just related them to the omega’s escape from the house through the forest. It was no wonder he’d gotten hurt, considering the harsh Russian vegetation and terrain. The answer to why the omega had gone to the house barefoot was still a mystery to Viktor, though. Maybe he’d just lost his shoes on the run.

Another whine snapped Viktor back into the present, his alpha instincts surfacing at the call of distress. He looked up to the omega’s face in search of something that might have been bothering him, but found none. While Viktor stared, the omega had curled up tighter, hiding both limbs and head as close as his chest as possible. He was shaking again, so the alpha grabbed a thick comforter at the feet of his bed and put it over the kid.

Might as well get him something warm to eat. The poor child must be starving.

Viktor released as much calming pheromones as he could, feeling nauseated at his own smell. But the omega relaxed, so Viktor deemed it a small victory.

“Stay here, honey.” Yup, the name had a nice roll on his tongue. “I’ll be right back.”

And so, he slowly and quietly exited the room, making a mental note to leave the door halfway open in case the omega panicked while he wasn’t there.

He made the awful mistake to turn on his phone when he was waiting for his coffee machine to heat up.

Yakov’s name was flooding Viktor’s screen, the previews of his messages becoming angrier and more desperate. He had fifteen missed calls, and while Viktor could normally go and have a drink with his boss as if they were long term friends, it was in moments like these when he became more of a parental figure.

There was no way in hell having fifteen missed calls from your mother meant anything good.

Alpha and all aside, Viktor was terrified when he pressed the button to call back. Not two rings into the call and he was greeted with Yakov’s roar.

“What the fuck is your problem, you brat!” he heard him shout, having to remove the phone from his ear because of how loud it was. “I specifically told you not to dive right in! What the hell does “test the waters” mean to you?!”

“Yakov, please calm down.” Viktor tried, but his boss was having none of it.

“And a guardianship permit out of all of things! Do you know the trouble you’re in right now?! You’re all over the news, Viktor!”

“Boss, let me explain!”

“Explain what, you dense brat?!”

“I…” Explain what, exactly? That Viktor fell for the eyes of the omega right away? That he felt so right when the kid had hugged him that first time? The pain in his chest? The smell of his own sadness? “I- I don’t know…”

Viktor was lost.

He was prepared for another series of screams and scolds, but what he received was nothing like it. He heard Yakov give a long sigh, and then silence.

“Yakov, I’m at a loss of words, unfortunately.” Viktor said instead, leaning on the kitchen counter and gazing down at his feet. A lawyer with no information was useless both in and out of court. “I don’t really know what to tell you.”

“Was it your stupid sense of justice again?” Yakov asked, a little calmer this time.

Viktor nodded solemnly before he remembered his boss wouldn’t be able to see that.

“Yes. Uh, yeah…” he corrected himself. “You didn’t see him, boss. He’s miserable in this state.”

“Do you trust that omega, Viktor?”

The alpha hadn’t expected that question. Who’d ever talked of trust?

“I don’t even know him!” He stated. “Why do you ask that?”

“Yet you decided to keep him safe with you. At your place and all.” Well, Viktor couldn’t argue with that. “What made you think you needed to protect him? Apart from the fact that your instincts must have short-circuited your bran, obviously.”

If it were so easy to explain, Viktor would have enthusiastically done so. Instead, he was left with that same question blinding his mind, but at the same time anchoring it to his rational thoughts.

He looked into his head, trying to find the answer somewhere. It was apparently obvious he wasn’t going to get any money from this case, and the downfall could end his professional career – if it wasn’t already lost, of course. He did get a place on the spotlight of the moment, but he’d never wished for it to be for this reason in particular.

Maybe it was his stupid sense of justice alone, like what Yakov had feared.

But something in the omega had made him need to take care of him. Like actual need, the kind that doesn’t go away until you’ve managed to comply such desire.

“His eyes.” Viktor said, before he could stop himself.

“What?” asked a confused Yakov.

“His eyes, Yakov. I just knew it.” Viktor clarified, the mental image of honey-brown orbs looking up at him, asking for help. “No eyes like those could ever want to see blood, much less be the reason for it.”

“You’re going nuts, Viktor, I swear.” From the other end of the line, Viktor could hear the exasperated sigh and picture his boss facepalming in annoyance. He flinched at the thought, and he became awfully aware of the embarrassing thing he’d just said.

His coffee machine had beeped long ago, his overly sweet nectar waiting for him at the counter with a hypnotizing smell. Viktor admired the steam revolving over the hot cup, disappearing into the air as if it had never existed. The alpha was aware of his boss’s consideration, but he was so nervous he could barely think over the smell of his own pheromones.

Finally, Yakov spoke again. “Your impulsiveness is going to be the death of you. I thought you had learned that already. But hey, we’re all young at some point in life.”

What? Viktor frowned, going through the phrase all over again in his head. Yakov had said what?

“What are you…”

“I’m saying,” Yakov interrupted him. “that you made an awful mistake when you took the case without even giving it a night with the pillow.” Viktor flinched again, biting his lower lip worriedly. “But we’ve all been there. It’s not the end of the world.”

“Yakov?”

“Let me finish, you insolent brat!” the other alpha shouted again, and Viktor resisted the urge to chuckle when he heard another sigh. “I’m telling you. While you were terribly unprofessional earlier today, I saw the recording of your session. You were flawless, as always.” Yakov paused for a second, and his subordinate had a moment to brace for the incoming hit. None came, though.

“You know what you’re doing, Viktor. And I’ve never seen someone look so sure of themselves on the court. You trust yourself, so I’ll trust you on this one.”

“You… are fine with it?” Viktor asked in disbelief.

“Not at all. But I know you’re doing the right thing.” Yakov answered with a huff. “Go collect your evidence, prepare your statements and seal the breaches that the prosecution could take ahold of. You’re preparing a self-defense statement?”

“Yeah, but I really need to get the omega to talk so I can work it out.” He still hadn’t recovered from the shock, but talking about work always got his mind clear and sharp once more.

“Then focus on getting him into a safe headspace. You need to gain his trust. Meanwhile, I’ll go and get as much information as I can.”

“Wait, you’re helping me?”

“Do you want me to lose my job because an ignorant brat decided to play Phoenix Wright to save some omega he just met?”

How did Yakov even know that reference?!

“No, boss.”

“I thought so. Now, stay away from the press and get back to the omega.” He said, finishing the conversation. “As soon as you get him to talk, the better. Take care, Viktor.”

He didn’t even have a chance to say goodbye before Yakov ended the call.

All Viktor heard was his own heartbeat. He put the phone in the counter in automatic pilot, and only when he let go of it was he able to take a deep breath and shake off his nerves. At least Yakov wasn’t that mad.

Viktor didn’t think much of it for the time being, needing to tend to the omega’s needs before moving on to the boring legal procedures. With that in mind, he gulped down his now warm coffee and went to the refrigerator.

The omega seemed to be in a pretty deep stage of omega space, maybe fifth or fourth stage. He was not conscious. He couldn’t talk, much less form coherent thoughts. His movements were small and weak; overall, he was living out of pure survival instincts. And that was just if the kid wasn’t dropping further into stage six, which was roughly living in a vegetative state. Viktor couldn’t let that happen, or the kid was done for.

So, that meant no liquid was going to do him good. He would probably choke on them, and he wasn’t strong enough to suck from a straw. Chewing was no good either, for he wouldn’t be able to do much and get tired easily.

On the other hand, omega space required the kid to be constantly feeding and drinking. It did take a lot of energy from the omega to keep his body functioning with barely any fuel. Their bodies used all it could, not letting anything go to waste. Having to go to the bathroom during a period of omega space was unheard of.

So, Viktor settled with cubes of fruit in a bowl. They would give him enough liquids and sugar to keep him from starving. He cut some peaches, a banana and oranges. He had apples and a pineapple too, but the first one required a good amount of chewing and the second one could irritate the omega’s mouth. The juiciness of the peach and oranges along with the soft texture of the banana would give the omega something to occupy his mind in.

Satisfied with his choice, Viktor walked back to his room with the bowl of fruit. However, when he pushed open the door, he felt his heart skipping a bit. He’d forgotten Makkachin!

“Makka! Get away from there!” he said, taking three long strides towards the bed, where his dog was currently eyeing the omega from up close. She was enthusiastically waving her tail, but Viktor wasn’t worried about her.

However, when he got closer and was prepared to haul Makkachin out of the bed, the sight he received almost broke his heart in half.

Makka had her nose inches away from the omega’s face, who was looking at her in fascination. Viktor was in awe the kid had finally shown any kind of emotion, and his gaze moved down to a point where the omega’s chained hand was squeezing and petting stray strands of fur. He seemed curious and… content? From a moment to another, a tear fell from the omega’s eye.

Startled on the sudden change, Viktor was going to intervene. But suddenly, Makkachin licked the place where the tear had slid down his owner’s cheek, and the omega actually smiled.

Viktor swore his heart broke for sure then. Makka seemed happy with the response she got from the omega, and she continued licking the tears that started falling in quick succession. And the omega kept smiling, amidst of his crying. His hand came up to his own face, shielding it from the dog’s wet attack, but he did nothing to stop it.

Viktor’s face was hurting with his own smile. He was pretty sure he’d strained something for smiling so big.

When the dog stopped her ministrations, Viktor did put an end to it. He carefully grabbed the omega’s armpits and gently pushed him up, resting his back on the mountain of pillows behind him. He whined when his hand stopped touching soft fur, but Makka was quick to rest her head on the omega’s leg and he smiled contentedly once more.

“You like dogs, honey?” Viktor asked, knowing he wouldn’t get any response. But he was so happy the omega had reacted at his dog! He was going to get some bones for Makkachin to chew on, she was truly a godsend.

He grabbed a cube of peach and took it to the omega’s mouth. He let the fruit touch his lower lip, squeezing the cube so some juice would fall on the omega’s mouth, and he slowly opened his mouth to accept it.

Viktor pushed it in, right over his tongue. He felt the soft texture of his mouth before gently taking his fingers away. He watched as the omega moved the fruit around, closing and opening his jaw. That alone seemed to be taking the kid a lot of effort.

However, when he swallowed, the omega opened his mouth once more, without even needing Viktor to offer another sweet treat.

“Good boy.” He said, and grabbed a piece of banana this time.

It was harder for the omega to swallow this one, but the exercise would keep him focused at least until he got tired. Viktor repeated the procedure with orange this time, chuckling when the omega’s face soured at the taste. He didn’t spit it out, though.

Not even half of the bowl was finished when the omega stopped opening his mouth. His eyes were dropping again, which meant it was time to go to sleep.

Makkachin whined when Viktor pushed her from the omega’s lap, but she quickly found her place once more by laying next to his small, curled form under the covers. The kid sighed contentedly when his arms reached Makkachin’s furry body. Viktor wanted so bad to snap a picture of both of them, but it was against his permit to take advantage like that.

Oh well, his mind could do with the image of the lightly snoring omega and his dog for a little longer.

Sadly, he got the feeling such a beautiful scenario wasn’t going to last much longer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	4. Stranger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the delay, guys. I swear I had the idea in my head, but I couldn't find any time to sit down and write it down!  
> But now it's okay. I think (keyword is THINK) that the worst and more stressful assignments are already completed, so I'm hoping the next chapter will be posted sometime during next week.  
> This time we have a little more action at the courthouse. No fluff yet, because I feel like you'll get sick of it by the time the story-required fluff comes. Yet the angst is painful on this one.  
> Be prepared.
> 
> OH! AND I MADE SOME ARTWORK! (lol I don't even know how to draw body anatomy, so this piece took quite a long time to finish) I present you scared/hurt Katsuki Yuuri in serious need of a hug!

 

* * *

 

Whichever god had made his brother Yuri such a hyperactive brat, really didn’t know what a true omega was like. Viktor had realized that in the few hours in which he sat by his bed, watching over the honey-eyed omega sleep, while he answered text after text from Yuri.

The day before the session, Viktor had spent it with the omega. He barely responded to any distraction the alpha could come up with, which was expected. However, the kid did react to certain smells and sounds.

The smell of Viktor’s cologne, specially, and Makkachin’s excited barking would always make him divert his gaze and stare at her.

So, when Viktor had finally contacted him, his brother had been furious at him for ignoring him. Still, even with the angriness coming from those messages, Viktor couldn’t be mad. Who would be with an angel sleeping so peacefully in front of them? Any alpha capable of managing that feat had to be a literal beast.

More so the thousands of people who would just swallow all their hate towards the omega upon seeing such beauty. There was a reason why Viktor hadn’t turned the TV on again.

He found himself absentmindedly answering his brother over the phone – who had just repeated what Yakov and Ignatieff and practically everyone who had talked to him after taking the case had said. It was nothing new. His true concern was how he would manage to pry his eyes from the kid and go back to work.

Easier said than done. That’s why, after sending off his last text to Yuri, Viktor gave up trying. He stood up, went down the hall to retrieve his laptop from the living room and went back to his place. Maybe he wasn’t going to be able to work as much as he’d hoped with the lingering smell of fear and panic in his room, but at least he’d be able to keep an eye on the omega.

He took out his notepad from his jacket and began typing a new document.

Usually, he’d take about two hours to finish the outline of his case. This time, however, not even half an hour had passed when all of Viktor’s information was poured into a word document. Notes and comments in bright colors adorned the pages of his text, adding up to about twelve pages in total. Viktor let out the breath he was holding, scratching the back of his neck, surprised at his own speed.

But hell, with nothing else to think about for the whole day, the alpha had practically swallowed up the information like a sponge and organized it with expertise. No detail escaped his hands, and the layout of his document left Viktor satisfied.

He went over it once, freshening his mind with the sudden language changes he’d made when he couldn’t remember a word in Russian – it had started to happen with much more frequency now that most of his reads were in English; Russians aced it with drama and angst, but English’s were the kings of those detective novels he loved so much. For him, his document made sense, and that was all he needed. However, if Yakov was helping him, then he needed to get his notes as clear as possible for him.

A few hours had passed since their conversation, and Yakov had already forwarded him a bunch of files with some extra information for the case. He’d apparently gone to the police station and requested a written statement of the officer in charge of the scene, along with the official report of the case. All the evidence found in the house put into a folder, pictures and laboratory samples organized and labeled. Viktor was surprised with the efficiency and speed with which the police worked on this case. Never before had he received the official papers the day after the crime had happened.

Well, never before had an omega been directly involved in such a strange case. Rape and theft, sure, but murder? The amount of people involved and expectant of answers in the case could have been that extra push.

It didn’t even take an hour into this mess for Viktor to realize he was at the center of the storm. No one was taking him out, though.

So, he logged into his e-mail and opened all three from Yakov at once, his eyes scanning page after page of information. To this point, not even the pictures of the deceased alpha’s body – both at the scene and in the autopsy room – made him flinch. Not for nothing had he become the lawyer he was now. This was nothing compared to what he’d seen in other cases.

But he didn’t bother with the pictures. What mattered was the written evidence. Implying something was true because he saw a picture about it was not accepted as evidence on the court; he wasn’t going to play a forensic investigator when he already had all their job written right under the photographs.

Clean shot through the jaw to the brain. No exit wound. The bullet had been found embedded on the alpha’s head, stopped only by the parietal bone. 9mm TT model gun – recoil too strong for the omega to hold by himself, Viktor made sure to write that on his side notes -, registered to Dmitri Denisovich. No other entry wound found on the alpha’s body, however there were four other bullet holes around the place where they had struggled for the control of the gun.

A superficial examination had been made to the omega, too. No officer was allowed to check him up naked in that state, but they hadn’t found any bullet wound. His clothes, he read later, were not that useful as evidence. A social worker hired by the police had jurisdiction enough to take the kid’s clothes off, but in a closed and dark room. They were put into a bag and examined, but they were so soaked up in blood that they couldn’t get much out of them.

He didn’t have any footwear when they caught him, and the soles of his feet were covered in blisters and wounds. Some still bleeding, some older. The words homeless and poor appeared in Viktor’s mind, but he refused to write them in his document. Nothing could prove that, he couldn’t present it as evidence, and trying to pass it as an emotional suggestion for the jury could make him loose credibility.

Surprisingly, Viktor had hoped the files in his computer screen would reveal something different to what he thought. He’d expected his self-defense plead would be solidified, or even supposed his work plan would be refuted easily. However, nothing seemed to give the case a definite outcome. Viktor had quite a wide field of action.

He just needed to work on his statement and prepare for whatever ground Ignatieff would build his arguments from. If he managed to get the prosecutor to lose his footing by contradicting and refuting his pillars, then his whole structure would fall.

That just meant Viktor had to prepare for what was coming.

 

* * *

 

 

At least the courthouse the session was held in had an underground parking lot, or else the reporters would have suffocated the omega. Over the course of the last two days, almost everyone was talking about his case, and the hate towards the omega intensified. Viktor had just hoped the public attending the session would keep quiet about it. The last thing he wanted was his client having a breakdown in front of all those people.

Client, huh? Viktor thought, looking at the kid and asking himself when had he stopped considering him such. He was curled up next to him in the waiting room sofa. His eyes were open, and this morning Viktor had been able to feed him and get him into his car with no resistance whatsoever. But the omega was still unresponsive, and communicating still seemed to be a hard task at the moment.

But it was okay for today. After all, this was just a recap hearing, in which both sides would present their evidence and set their sides and main arguments. Witness reports came at a later session, so today nothing would define what would happen with the kid. Viktor knew he had to give it his best, anyways. The prosecution was already favored by the jury, so at least he’d need to gain a few supporters so this case wouldn’t be lost from the beginning.

A knock on the door made him jump, and a face appeared from the entrance. A female officer, Viktor noticed, looked at the omega first, and then at him.

“Judge is here, session is starting soon.” The officer said, and Viktor nodded, standing up and straightening his clothes. Viktor looked at the omega, and gently patted his shoulder. At least the kid was strong enough now to stand on his own, but the alpha doubted he’d manage that for too long.

The officer came inside and grabbed the omega’s arm to escort him. Viktor tensed up, watching the gesture and preparing himself to snatch the kid from the woman if she dared treat him roughly. She was a beta, and her eyes were a soft shade of brown that showed concern for the irresponsiveness of the boy.

“Sorry for asking but,” the woman said, taking a step towards the omega, her brows furrowed. “in your opinion… is it really okay for him to be here? I mean, with the news and all. He seems so scared…”

Viktor then relaxed, pleased that there were still some who would not treat this omega like a criminal already when nothing concrete had been proved. “It is not.” Viktor answered and shrugged, forcing himself to relax. “And it shouldn’t happen. But it is happening now, and I’ll do everything and anything I can to keep him from being misjudged.”

The beta’s eyes lit up, and she nodded. “I hope you can. He doesn’t deserve this.”

“You couldn’t be more right.”

Yet it seemed only some believed that.

Entering the courtroom was difficult already, because when Viktor pushed open the door, the cameras began snapping pictures of him. He heard the hum of hushed whispers and the reporters at the back narrating his entrance. The seats were full of public, and the jury shared a look of disgust and aversion before looking back at him with accusatory eyes.

The judge looked at him with a neutral expression and Ignatieff was calmly leaning against the prosecution desk, a smirk playing in his lips.

Viktor had never been one to be intimidated by a multitude. On the contrary, he was the type that craved the attention. But the room smelled like challenge and anger, and his instincts just wanted him to fight back.

But he heard the omega whimper behind him, and he stopped in his tracks so as to be closer to him. He was wildly looking around the room, eyes unseeing. Viktor’s hand found its way to the back of the omega’s neck and squeezed softly. It seemed to calm the omega down a little bit, but Viktor’s fury was still ablaze. The beta officer urged the omega to move, and with Viktor’s help she maneuvered him to his seat behind the defense’s desk.

Just when Viktor had managed to take a shuddering breath to calm himself down, he heard someone shout behind him.

“You killed my dad!” followed by a strong thump that reverberated around the room. “You motherfucking bitch! You killed him!”

Viktor turned around to face a middle-aged man jumping the low wall separating the public from the session. The disgust in his face was something Viktor had never seen, ever. The man’s fists were red and tight, like if they were bricks.

But his eyes… Viktor couldn’t tear his gaze away while the man advanced right in front of him. Hostility, ferocity, like a beast hunting a juicy prey; the intent to kill was so present that the alpha would have taken him for a criminal without hesitation. But with the fury, there was a kind of sadness too. Hollowness? Despair? Like the hopelessness of a victim hearing their assaulter is free of charge?

His face was terribly familiar. Yet not only in the context of Viktor’s line of work – he’d seen enough criminals and enough victims. No, this was different, because the resemblance was almost photographic-like.

It was as if Dmitri Denisovich had come back to life, and was haunting the omega for what he’d done.

In his haze, Viktor mentally huffed. Yakov did say the man had a son.

But the chaos had already broken out. Cameras flashed, people shouted, and suddenly Viktor was able to see clearly again. The man was going towards the omega.

The alpha couldn’t move fast enough. He saw the omega turning around just in time to be met with the man’s fist. In slow motion, Viktor saw the kid fall back with the force of the impact, but the man was having none of it.

“Son of a bitch! You liked doing this to my dad, huh?!” He shouted, his hands holding the neck of the omega’s shirt, nearly tearing it. “What gave you the right, you scum?! Answer me!”

Viktor wasn’t able to throw any punch, but he managed to grab the back of the man’s jacket – an alpha, his nose supplied – and pulled with blind rage. The lawyer was by no means weak, he was proud of that at least. The man was sent tumbling backwards and then the officers threw themselves between him and Viktor, restraining the other while barking orders at him to keep still and quiet.

The judge’s gavel hitting the block managed to sync with Viktor’s frantic heartbeat.

Everything ended as fast as it had started, and Viktor almost let his number one preoccupation be forgotten. But the beta woman was there to aid him on that, letting out a sound of distress while calling his name.

The omega was on the floor, looking up with agonizing fear and trembling with the effort of his muscles contracting and shivering. A constant flow of blood was steadily dripping from his nose onto the floor.

Viktor then noticed the smell and gagged; his mind met only red with fury by the thought of someone hurting an omega so bad that the stench of his terror was so strong. But he overcame that for the sake of the kid, his other senses providing more and more information that confirmed the omega needed him.

His breath was hitched, sobs and whimpers coming out in irregular bursts. He was crying, and if Viktor didn’t have the support of his own sense of smell – unlike the beta trying to approach the omega to no avail – he wouldn’t have known the tears and blood-clogged nose were the reason to his inability to breath. Because it was just that; the kid was choking with his own breath.

Viktor couldn’t care less when he threw himself to the floor, right next to where the chair of the kid had fallen back amid the chaos, and crouched in front of the omega. He tried blocking his view from the particular point his eyes were fixed at, but his gaze didn’t even falter.

Wide, honey-brown eyes open and tears flowing freely out of them. His pupils were small and slit, and the omega’s hands had come up to cover his own mouth and nose, uselessly trying to prevent it from leaking any more blood. He was having a panic attack.

Viktor’s first approach was met with a such a strong flinch, that the kid’s body seemed to seize. Scared eyes moved from their initial position, trembling while they tried focusing on the hand Viktor had put in front of his face. The alpha tried hard to control his own hammering heartbeat while he tried to move his hand closer. Still, the omega panicked even further, backing up against the end of the desk with his legs flailing frantically in an attempt to escape.

“Kid… Honey, listen to me.” Viktor whispered, lowering his hand to try a different approach. “Please, hear me out. You’ll be okay, let me reach to you.”

Tears continued flowing, as if his words had fallen into deaf ears. Viktor sighed in exasperation, the feeling of hundreds of eyes on his back weighting him down. He was aware of his own nervousness. Hell, he was sure the whole court could sense his desperation, but he couldn’t focus on that.

Not now, his mind provided. Later. Right now, the omega needed him.

The alpha tried with his hand once more, but received the same answer. The omega choked again, a sound that sent shivers up Viktor’s back. The kid’s chest was heaving with every bit of air it could let inside, yet Viktor knew it wasn’t even nearly enough.

“Honey, please. Let me near, I’m only trying to help.” Viktor plead, getting more nervous by the second. But then, with agonizingly slow movements, one of the omega’s hand reached out, as if he had finally sensed Viktor’s presence. A trembling, skinny limb found its way out, and Viktor was fast to grab it with his own hand. Softly and gently, the alpha rubbed the back of the omega’s hand in circles, feeling his joints stiff under his touch.

He found the gesture invitation enough to go nearer. The alpha slid himself closer, his platinum blue eyes looking directly into warm yet frightened brown and never leaving them. The omega’s breath hadn’t normalized, but it seemed like he was trying his best to fix that.

Viktor sat right in front of the omega, their foreheads almost touching. But he just watched, waiting for the kid to make the first move. Not too long passed when, with a faltering inhale, the omega went directly into Viktor’s awaiting arms.

Surprisingly, Viktor had never been so relieved to have one of his suits dirtied with blood – yes, it had happened before, and not only once. He was so put at ease with the fact that the omega was alright, doing his best to try and breath normally again while Viktor cooed him with soft praise.

“Good boy, honey. You’re doing so well.” He whispered fondly. “You’re okay, everything is fine. Listen to my breathing, honey, try to match yours with mine. Yes, that’s good… Keep going at your own rhythm. You’re safe.”

Again, the alpha knew the omega wouldn’t be able to hear him, but his constant words seemed to help. The omega’s breath had evened a great deal, but he was still having trouble keeping it steady. Even if he wanted to wait under the desk until the omega was calm enough, what made Viktor realize that he was not in a place where this could go on forever, was the silence inside the court, surprisingly.

He awkwardly managed to maneuver himself out of the small place, the omega still latched onto his arms. He didn’t even dare look at the public, much less to the jury and prosecution. With the hold on the kid as steady as he could keep it, his gaze instantly found the judge’s eyes over the flash of what felt like thousands of cameras taking pictures of him. He could imagine that: his face on the cover of the local – and national, maybe – newspaper, his clothes wrinkled and bloody, an unmated omega in his arms, but with a look of unappalled confidence that he was determined to maintain.

“Your Honor” he spoke, strong and steady voice that made every camera stop snapping for a second. “I’d like to request an adjournment of the session. My client is in no state to be kept here.”

“Denied, Mr. Nikiforov.” The judge responded, though his regret and hurt didn’t go unnoticed. “We can’t move this session any further. Both the public and the families deserve to know what happened.”

“Yet we’re putting my client’s sanity in danger, Your Honor!” Viktor alleged, calming significantly when he felt the omega stiffen in his arms.

“The prosecution agrees with the defense, Your Honor.” when Viktor turned his head and saw Ignatieff with the same look of determination in his face as him, it was his own breath that faltered. “Accused or not, assault under the watch of the law is to be compensated. It is not in the hands of the public to inflict punishment, and neither should it happen with such ease. Also, the omega requires medical attention.”

Astonished was not enough to describe the look on Viktor’s face when Ignatieff supported his statement. It was a clear disadvantage for the prosecution that the omega was attacked in public, the vulnerability and weakness prone to awaken feelings of sympathy and pity on the spectators of the scene. However, it seemed Ignatieff was not one to let his job interfere with his humanity and compassion, and Viktor admired that.

The judge looked at both parties for a second, the silence of the court agonizing. Not even the accusatory whispers were heard anymore; it was like the four people in front of the court were the only ones there. But then, the judge spoke once more.

“The court is willing to let the accused be excused of this session, in order to get medical assistance. He is not to be included in any of the parties’ evidence, until the next session ensues.” He finished, looking directly at Viktor.

Well, it wasn’t what the alpha was expecting, but the judge was right. He couldn’t just ditch this. As much as he wanted to keep the omega in his arms until he would finally calm down, now was not the moment. It hurt him so much that he’d been purposely injured, but there was nothing much he could do about it right now.

Viktor looked back at Ignatieff before stating his answer. His face seemed to be supporting his decision even before establishing it.

“The defense accepts the court’s offer.” He said, solemnly, even when his mind was worrying over the fact that he had to continue this madness while the kid was in another room, scared to hell and back.

“Very well then. We’ll take a recess of fifteen minutes. Until then, the defense is allowed to remain in the same room as their client.” The judge hummed once and banged his gavel on the block, making his statement official.

Cameras snapped once more, the humming resuming from the back of the room until it reached Viktor’s ears. He ignored it, focusing on the small noises the omega was making in his arm, and walked back to the door he had come from. The beta officer followed close behind him.


	5. Evidence

The omega wouldn’t let any paramedic close to examine his nose. His face was hidden in Viktor’s chest, and every attempt to move him was met with a pained whine and another heartbreaking sob that eventually lead to Viktor having to check the injury. The paramedic had to step several feet away from the duo for the omega to finally move.

Viktor was briefly brought back to the time when he had to help his brother Yuri with the same thing. He remembered having to sit on the warm pavement; his brother on his knees in front of him, tears and blood dirtying both his face and blonde hair. His shoulders had been trembling with suppressed sobs while his older brother checked that his nose wasn’t broken. He scowled when he remembered why he had found himself in that situation.

When he got the call from his brother’s school, he wasn’t surprised to hear Yuri had been involved in yet another fight. It was recurrent for him to be throwing punches and insults around, and while he had just recently presented as an omega, every adult hoping he would finally calm down and embrace this new dynamic, his fighting spirit hadn’t disappeared one bit. What he didn’t expect was the reason to this brawl.

When Yuri told him - only him, because their mother only scolded him for his impulsiveness and Yuri said he didn’t trust her very much anyways -, through tears and sobs that some older alpha kids had pinned him to a wall, spatting insults and names and even _touching him_ in places Yuri was aware he shouldn’t be touched, Viktor saw red. It had been the first time that he truly wanted to beat someone to pulp.

Insulting him for looking effeminate although he was an alpha, sure. He could deal with that. But bullying his baby brother because of the dynamic he presented, no way in hell. That time, he acted as a parental figure and took the responsibility to inform the parents of every single kid about what they had done, and Yuri never had to put up with their stupidity again.

And now, there was another omega kneeling in front of him, nose bloody and tears flowing out from his eyes. This time, Viktor was pretty sure he felt worse than that day all those years ago. The chains locking his limbs together was proof enough.

So, after assuring the paramedic that it wasn’t broken, just bruised, and the guy tossed a bunch of sealed gauze and tape, Viktor was left alone with the omega once more. The beta policewoman had excused herself after the session, saying something about a reunion of some sort - probably because of the breach in security that allowed the omega to get hurt in the first place.

In the silence of the room, Viktor could only hear the seconds ticking away in his wristwatch. In just five minutes he would have to go back to the courtroom, and while he felt more decided than ever to give his best, he didn’t want to leave the omega alone yet.

He remembered a pretty explicit lesson from when he was getting his support certificates about panic attacks. The most important rule was to not leave their side until the alpha was sure they had calmed down. Viktor was aware that the omega wouldn’t react, him being there or not. However, his instincts were protesting against walking back to the courtroom. He had no other choice. Five minutes, and he had to go.

So, he used up his time cuddling the omega against his chest. His jacket was already ruined, so Viktor had long ago decided that he would go back out without it. Right now, the omega was contentedly rubbing his cheek on the soft fabric. At least it counted as some kind of comfort; the alpha growled low in appreciation, making the omega settle in his lap with the sound. The smell of fear had reduced greatly in the span of the last ten minutes,

But the time ran past, and soon another officer came into the room looking after him. Behind the man was a woman dressed in a soft pink sweater and jeans, an attire so informal that Viktor didn’t notice the ID hanging from her neck at first. She just didn't fit in the ambient of a courthouse, so he feared the reason of her presence.

The woman didn’t fail to sense the wary glare coming from his icy blue eyes.

"Eva Yozhov." She said with a bright smile that lightened up her chubby face. "I'm the social worker assigned to look after the omega for the duration of the session, Mr. Nikiforov."

"They requested a counselor? Why?" Viktor asked, confused.

"The judge called me and explained the situation at hand, and my professional opinion tells me this omega shouldn't be left by himself for the time being."

Viktor studied her, and nodded in understanding.

Eva looked like a nice lady, and her sweet, fruity scent was enormously pleasant to his nose. Viktor suddenly felt glad that at least the courthouse had found someone that wouldn't intimidate the omega even further, because the thought of leaving him with someone while he worked had completely slipped from his mind.

However, it was the omega's job to judge her, but he didn't seem like a big fan of letting go of Viktor's suit.

"Honey, you have to let me go" Viktor whispered, and smiled to himself when he noticed the cheesiness of the line he had used. Too many American movies. "Come on, I have to go and defend you out there."

But the omega didn't budge. Viktor sighed, looking with hopelessness in the direction of the officer, who was beginning to show tinges of annoyance in his posture, and the counselor. She sent a knowing smile his way, and took it as her cue to move forward and intervene.

Viktor tried prying the omega's weak hold with gentle movements, finally managing to loosen his grip. The kid whined at the loss of the heat his body was emitting, and desperately tried to cuddle deeper into the embrace. Viktor subdued his attempts trying hard not to stress him, but the frantic movements showed him he was failing the task.

"Honey, it's alright, I won't be gone for too long." He said, and from there, counselor Yozhov got ahold of his arms and helped Viktor hoist the kid away. Even when he was feebly kicking and thrashing, clearly subdued already, Viktor suddenly heard him protest.

"N-no. P-ple...ase" he heard. A simple, stuttered dialogue with a voice trembling with abandonment that made his heart skip a beat.

Viktor almost felt like crying, realizing that such a plead had managed to get through the deep levels of omega space just so the omega didn't feel alone. It was the fear imbedded into those mere syllables that almost convinced Viktor to stay, but he hopelessly came to the conclusion that he would be of much more help out there than inside with him.

"I promise I'll be back. I won't leave you." Viktor whispered back, full of remorse already, but received no response in return.

The omega's eyes were hazy with darkness once more, his brief moment of lucidity lost in the depths of his mind.

Eva the took hold of the situation, sitting the boy down on the floor in front of her. Betas didn't have the same ability to comfort that both omegas and alphas were widely known for. And still, Eva's maternal looks and homely scent were already making a difference between the omega's attitude towards other strangers and her. He was letting her near; even if he didn't agree to touch just yet, the proximity was enough to show that - at least - he wasn't scared of her.

Eva looked up to meet Viktor's concerned gaze. "He'll be okay, Mr. Nikiforov." she said, cheeks lifting and teeth showing, a smile so childish that Viktor would have been weirded out had not been for the confidence it promised.

Before leaving the room, though, Viktor took off his suit jacket and knelt to be at the omega's level. The kid barely looked up from his place, but when Viktor left the piece of clothing in his hand's reach, the omega instantly grabbed it and brought it to his face, where he sniffed contentedly.

Viktor then smiled at the beta, putting a hand on her shoulder and receiving one last sun-like smile, before he turned back to where the officer was still waiting for him.

 

* * *

 

 

Viktor had just finished giving one of his last statements when Ignatieff presented his key argument.

The alpha wasn’t expecting anything like that to be shown so early in the case, and he mentally scolded himself for believing it. Ignatieff had very clearly said that he wasn’t going to go easy on him.

Yet it caught him so unprepared that he was barely able to make a comeback.

The proof he showed to the audience was a video. After thoroughly explaining that it contained crude content, especially for the family of the victim and receiving the approval of the judge, it was shown in every screen of the courtroom.

The scene showed a view from outside a window of Dmitri Denisovich’s house, looking directly into the living room and stairs. What was on the left side of the stairs was blocked from the view by a wall. At that point, Viktor was already beginning to get nervous.

The video was paused for a minute, and Ignatieff used the time to speak.

“The following recording was captured by Mr. Denisovich’s crash camera from his car. This gadget was hired alongside Mr. Denisovich’s insurance, and it consists of a small camera both in the front and back of his vehicle, which is constantly recording footage twenty-four seven.” He explained, yet the image was still unchanged. “Dear audience, this is the file of the day of the crime. It clearly shows the time and development of the action itself.”

Viktor did start sweating then. He had no idea this piece of evidence even existed, so he figured Ignatieff must have gone to the site itself to get it.

 _Fuck, fuck, fuck!_ Was all he could think about when the recording was started once more. His eyes stuck in the image, Viktor could only hope for the worst.

Dmitri Denisovich appeared on the frame coming from the left side of the stairs, and while he wasn’t exactly a healthy young man, he went up the stairs two at a time in a quick succession of steps.

Then, the omega appeared.

Black hair was the first thing Viktor recognized, because the quality of the camera was good, but not good enough to show the yellow glow of his eyes that made him stand out from the rest. His movements were frantic, yet immensely precise, while he was shown looking around the house and tiptoeing his way into the living room. A collective murmur was heard in the courtroom when the omega suddenly hid behind the wall dividing the living room from the stairs, chest heaving with every breath, and the elderly alpha walked down the stairs with the gun in his hands.

The omega didn’t move from his position when the alpha took the route back to the left side of the stairs, and several seconds later came back, trotting right into the living room with the gun pointing forward, ready to shoot in sight.

Viktor’s breath hitched when the small omega launched himself to the tall and menacing alpha, grabbing the cannon of the gun while the first shot was fired, missing both of them but imbedding itself to a nearby wall. They struggled for control of the gun, yet it was evident Dmitri overpowered the omega in terms of strength. Both men’s arms bent and flexed with the effort of the other, the deadly weapon pointing everywhere in a macabre game of pushing and pulling. Another three shots rang out in quick succession, but none was subdued.

Until the last shot left the barrel, that is, and the alpha’s massive body plummeted down, face first onto the floor, life taken out of him with an explosion of gruesome red. Viktor had to resist the temptation to look away as the omega was left standing in the middle of the scene, immobile, the alpha’s limp hand still trapped between cold iron and warm flesh.

In truth, Viktor had seen death before. He’d worked with security cameras, and even had trained under the guidance of professors that always showed him the worst-case scenario. Death was a companion of the cases he’d felt inclined to take. He didn’t fear it, and was pretty used to the small chit-chat with his coworkers in which death was just a consequence, and only that.

But there, still standing since his turn to present his arguments until now, with knees feeling like jelly under the weight of his own body, he was nauseated. The recording couldn’t have taken longer than a minute, yet Viktor’s mind raced over every detail, almost every different frame his eyes could take notes of, and it still seemed surreal. He was in the same state of shock as the omega on the screen.

Until the kid in the screen moved, the audience of the session held a collective breath. The murmurs resumed when the omega finally reacted.

The gun fell to the floor, and the kid bolted. He jumped over the dead body and ran, disappearing from view as he escaped towards the left side of the stairs.

Just like that, the screen went black, and the spell the whole courthouse had been affected by lifted. The reporters at the back talked and informed and narrated, cameras swept through the public, finding the faces of a group that Viktor had come to realize were Denisovich’s family. Their crying, horrified faces told him so. He was sure than more than one camera was taking him into focus, but his gaze had moved to look at Ignatieff as if he had grown a second head.

The only coherent thought in his mind was that this recording had every piece of evidence possible to vanquish his possibility to pledge for self-defense. And Ignatieff’s smug smirk was more than enough to show that the prosecutor was aware of it. Viktor could almost see his lips mouthing _I got you right where I want you, Viktor_ , but the rational part of his mind told him he couldn’t be losing his composure now.

That same rational part was telling him he’d lose the case if he didn’t do something quickly.

The judge banged his gavel for what felt like the umpteenth time that day, commanding the court to fall silent.

“Prosecution, elaborate.” He said, and Viktor was frozen in place while Ignatieff grabbed a sheet of paper and looked back at the jury.

“With the previous evidence, it is now safe to say that the succession of events is now clear. The omega is shown walking around Mr. Denisovich’s house, and subsequently proceeding to ambush him in a moment of vulnerability.”

Viktor’s ears perked up at the statement.

“Objection, no such vulnerability presented.” He said quickly, and flinched when the murmur of disapproval coming from the jury reached his ears.

“Silence! Mr. Nikiforov, please expand your claim.” The judge, however, permitted the argument and urged him to speak. Viktor forced himself to stop thinking the judge was pitying him.

“Yes, Your Honor. The prosecution alleged that Mr. Denisovich had been vulnerable when the omega _encountered_ him.” He said, careful not to repeat the same word Ignatieff had used when he mentioned the omega “assaulting” the alpha. “Yet Mr. Denisovich had a gun, for which the principle for proportional response was not respected. His reaction was exaggerated.”

His heartbeat surprisingly rose even higher when Ignatieff interrupted him.

“But the omega was violating a private residence, Your Honor. He had a right to protect his household supported by our jurisdiction.”

“Which is not reason enough to draw a gun against an unarmed omega.” _Shit!_ Viktor bit his lip after the last word escaped his mouth. His eyes whipped back to Ignatieff, mind already coming up with an excuse to why he had said omega when he shouldn’t have. But he didn’t say anything, so Viktor just continued. “Where is the right of my client to defend himself when his life is in danger?”

However, Ignatieff didn’t object it. Instead, he smirked deviously.

“With the pardon of the family-” Ignatieff said, sparing a glance towards the audience. “Should I remind you, Mr. Nikiforov, that such a statement would have only been valid if Mr. Denisovich was the one alive right now? It was him whose house was invaded, so all rights were vanquished the second the accused stepped into the property.”

Viktor’s speech was caught in his throat at the impossibility to counter state that. As much as he hated to admit it, no court would ignore such an explicit argument. Yet Ignatieff wasn’t accepting the silence as defeat enough.

He put the papers back on his desk and stood up straighter, causing everyone to look back at him once more. He had the court eating from the palm of his hand.

“Mr. Denisovich truly believed he was in lethal danger, being proof of it the fatal outcome of the situation. Exaggerated use of force is justified under this circumstance, and so is the use of guns to protect his household from an intruder.”

“Then why didn’t he call the police?” Viktor questioned with a thin voice. Ignatieff’s smirk grew wider.

“Objection-” he calmly stated, and Viktor could have sworn the world spun around him at the word he feared so much. “Deviation of the topic.”

It was then when Viktor realized he’d run into right into his trap.

The judge cleared his throat. “Defense’s previous objection overruled. Prosecution’s is sustained. Overreaction would have been sustained had the accused been the victim, not the house owner, Mr. Nikiforov.” With a final bang of his bagel, the judge gave an end to the argument. “However, because of the lack of an end or killing intent and the background circumstances of the action, this court cannot state a sentence just yet. Hence, this session is postponed until further evidence is recollected.”

No one got to speak to Viktor before he left the courtroom in a hurry. He needed some fresh air or he was going to suffocate with his own self-loathing pheromones.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DO NOT PANIC (well, do, but not so much)  
> This is not the end of the legendary attorney Viktor Nikiforov.


	6. Hindrance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I didn't answer this in the comments, but I'd wanted to write this chapter and hopefully clear some of your questions.  
> As for the plot-related comments, I'm over the clouds with the amount of people already making their assumptions! It fills me with joy to read them!  
> (Although you're pretty close, there's something for you in these following chapters that may give you a few hints on what you're missing to crack the mystery :P)  
> Enjoy!

Yakov was the first person to find Viktor. He was sitting on a bench at the indoor garden of the courthouse, so deep in thought that he didn’t see Yakov approach him at first. When Viktor noticed his boss walking towards him, he huffed out a miserable laugh.

“Where have you been this entire time?” he said, barely looking up from his lap to acknowledge his boss.

“Back seats.” He answered, though his expression remained unchanged when he reached him, not bothering to sit next to Viktor on the bench. His shadow loomed over him. “You’re out of your mind, Viktor.”

There was no reason for Viktor to disagree.

“I’m fucking it all up, boss” he spited, angry at his own mistakes. “Can you believe I never knew of that video’s existence? Ignatieff caught me completely unprepared!”

Yakov frowned. “You could file an injunction if the guy didn’t share that evidence with you-”

“He did share it.” Viktor interrupted him, taking out his phone and shoving it to Yakov’s face. “Even discussed it at length and added a bunch of stuff the police found in the house. I forgot to check my email.”

Yakov, as the spitting image of an alpha right about to explode, did so. “You didn’t check your mail even though you’re in the middle of the case? Are you insane?!” he raged, outburst so sudden that Viktor flinched in his seat. A foul smell found his nostrils, and he recoiled away from the threat.

“It’s the firm’s institutional mail…” he whispered, head down and fists clenching in his lap, unable to do anything to stop the feeling of self-loathing plaguing his mind. “You know I don’t check that shit.”

“And it fucking costed you half a week’s worth of work, you brat!” Viktor had nothing better to do than keep quiet. He heard Yakov sigh exasperatedly, and saw him shift his weight from one foot to the other as he always did when he was nervous. “So what was your plan, at the very least?”

Viktor groaned, lifting his hands from his lap only to bring them back down again with a jerky movement. He was at a loss of words for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

“I’d prepared a series of arguments against what Ignatieff had already stated.” He began, flinching again when the older alpha let out a huff of annoyance. “What?”

“I don’t care about that part, Viktor. You were flawless during the first forty minutes or so of the session. I mean about what you’ve discovered so far.”

“The omega isn’t talking yet, I don’t – didn’t have anything new. With Ignatieff’s video, I may be able to -”

“Your duty is to get that omega to talk. He’s the only reason why you haven’t lost the case yet.” Yakov intervened. Viktor’s head shot up at the new wave of anger that assaulted his sensitive nose.

“What are you implying?” Viktor asked cautiously but sharply. He knew the face Yakov was making right now; he was keeping something from him.

But he didn’t elaborate just yet. His mouth was kept a straight line until Viktor pushed him a bit with his own pheromones, issuing an unspoken challenge if he didn’t get what he wanted. His boss frowned at him, but Viktor just raised his brow as if saying come on, spit it.

And spit it he did.

“I believe this is a lost case, Viktor.” He said gravely.

“What makes you believe that?”

“For Christ’s sake, Viktor! Were we even in the same courtroom?!” he snapped, arms flailing at his sides. But Viktor didn’t move from his place; he wasn’t going to get intimidated. “The evidence!” he exclaimed after some second of unresponsiveness. “That video could have put that omega in prison if it wasn’t for the judge’s correctness on judicial procedures. He’s waiting for your client’s side of the story before making his verdict official. And to be honest with you, I don’t trust your omega to have a valid reason for killing that man.”

“Then where is the boss who gave me this case because he smelled something fishy in here?!”

“There’s still something awfully strange with this case, Viktor. I’m just saying that my professional opinion tells me to back away from it! Nothing good will come out of it.”

“Well then guess what, I can’t just throw all the files away and retire from the case. What do you expect me to do then?”

“Take a different approach at the situation. Don’t go for a self-defense claim, just try to reduce the omega’s sentence a bit. Though with the crudeness of that assault I doubt you’ll even manage that.” Yakov said, like he was stating his concluding argument, hoping to force Viktor to accept his conditions.

Yet Viktor was getting none of it. Stubborn as a mule, his mother used to say.

“No way. I’m not letting that omega go to prison.” He said, prepared already for the renewed rage his boss was emitting.

“You’re not losing your career because you fell for a lousy omega. You wouldn’t be so stupid.”

Before Viktor got himself to the point where he feared he might pounce into Yakov, the image of the omega’s honey brown eyes appeared in his mind, exponentially erasing the red he had been seeing for the past minutes. With a shuddering breath, the alpha did everything in his power to calm down. It wasn’t as if Yakov’s words were absolute; he had every right to disagree with him. It wasn’t a reason to fight.

“Maybe I would.” Viktor abruptly stood up from his seat, making Yakov back up a few steps back.

He barely heard Yakov calling out for him while he retreated back into the courthouse. His small break hadn’t been relaxing at all, and while a part of him knew Yakov was somehow right, he didn’t want to give up just yet.

 

* * *

 

 

The omega was asleep when Viktor went to fetch him from Eva. He regretted the coldness with which he said goodbye to her, but he was too pissed to care at that moment. It was particularly hard to leave the courthouse, too; the swarm of reporters - and even a few protestants against the case- surrounded the car as soon as it left the parking lot. It took everything of Viktor's resolve not to run over all of them.

He was seriously done with all these prejudiced people.

Viktor pulled over in the garage of his own house, letting out a sigh of relief when he finally turned the engine off. He breathed for a few seconds, in and out, using the omega laying unconscious on the passenger's seat as his anchor.

"The things you do to me, honey." he murmured, intently studying the rise and fall of his chest until he finally decided to leave the car.

Makkachin came bouncing towards them, yipping playfully because both her master and the strange boy had come back. Viktor knew his dog got easily attached to other people, yet this was the first time he'd seen her so excited.

He sighed once more. If only more people could be able to see whatever Makka saw in this kid.

The omega was once more safely cocooned between blankets and pillows, Makkachin snoring at his side, and with his hands gravitating towards the different textures. It was so enticing for Viktor that he couldn't look anywhere else. He found himself relaxing on his chair by the bed watching the kid sleep.

He'd actually sat and stared at him before, but with his resolve being put to test so often just this morning, the alpha needed to review his observations to keep his mind clear.

The omega looked so young, yet Viktor was fully aware he wasn't treating with a minor here. Dynamics usually made themselves known at thirteen, and gradually developed with the age. Because of the scent, mostly, the alpha could estimate him to be at least twenty. If he judged only his face, though, he'd easily pass as someone with sixteen. Must be because of his Asian features, Viktor though. Pale skin and dark hair, though his eyes had that special shine on them that made him stand out from the rest.

Yet, even with all those angelic features, the dull grey chains, reddened nose and the gauze over it got him back into reality. He'd killed a man. Incidentally or justified, the act was that a man had died and - even if Viktor didn't want to admit it out loud- it was mostly this kid's fault.

Part of his head was still reviewing the conversation with Yakov. He didn't agree with the older alpha, but Viktor knew his train of thoughts was gradually assimilating the facts, and his boss's opinion played a huge part on its interpretation. He was his boss after all.

Which also lead him to think he was at least working with a bunch of different views. That was never a bad thing, right?

Viktor wasn't one to work with many people, and he really appreciated that Yakov was helping him even with the belief that it was a lost case. The alpha didn't want to think it was because he had given up on it since the beginning, but the press wasn’t giving the firm the best publicity either. Half of being an attorney is conversational skills and logical resolve; the other half is mostly managerial skills. Trainees and law students picture the lone wolf heading off into the wild after shadowy hints and deductions, but in reality, people who don't play well with others wind up in the counseling business. Even a small investigation - and surely this wasn't small at all - involved floaters, media liaisons, the police, witnesses and so on. Every single person who had a piece of information mattered, and you need to make sure that at any given second all of them are keeping you up to deadlines, no one's getting into anyone's way and their position is contributing to the scheme of things.

Now, Viktor felt that every ounce of help he was receiving was out of pity. It sucked, but he was getting through with it.

Speaking of which, it did him no harm to check the information Ignatieff had sent him. Viktor hoped he'd be able to get a good look of the house in the future, but he knew the recollection of evidence could take weeks to finish. He wasn't putting a foot in that house anytime soon, but Ignatieff must have had a contact in the office so that they'd give him this so early into the case.

It basically was a tour of the house, as if Viktor was reading a walkthrough to a property he'd like to buy. The pictures were small on his phone, but they were arranged in such a way that the officer's description -along with a bunch of notes in bright red made with Ignatieff's clean, elegant handwriting- that made it look like a catalogue of some sort.

The door to the house was locked, and as the backdoor wasn't, they'd left it that way. The door was a few inches open in the picture, as if it had been swaying gently when the breeze caught it. It went into the kitchen, where "nothing seemed out of place", Viktor read. Although it was remarked that they weren't able to find any substantial food in there, just a bunch of tomato sauce cans and beans. Ignatieff added that Denisovich was a widower, which seemed to explain it. The omega's footprints had been found going into the house and out of it, yet it hadn't been possible to trace from where the omega had come. His footsteps began at a distance from the house, by a stone path, but that was all the officers had.

Further into the house, there was a hallway that lead to the front door, right next to the stairs. That was where the omega had appeared from in the video, and even from the distance, a few spatters of blood could be seen on the wall on the left. Viktor knew the living room was to the right, judging from the position of the stairs. He zoomed into the document and saw a few pictures of the bullet holes, the same one's he'd seen in the preliminary investigation.

The corpse had already been taken away in the following picture. "Gotta go to the morgue sometime on the week." Viktor thought, grimacing. He hated that place. It smelled like antiseptics and chemicals of all sorts. Like a hospital, but without the tinge of sickness to it. Instead, it smelled like death.

Viktor heard a small whimper, and he raised his head to stare at the omega, who was feebly tossing and turning inside his cocoon of blankets. Makkachin whined while raising her head, putting her nose in the crook between the omega's nape. Viktor stood up a little, observing the slight frown between the omega's brows.

"Hey, it's okay." Viktor whispered, brushing a few strands of hair away from his face. His hand suddenly felt the temperature of his forehead, and he worried that the kid may be coming down with a fever. Yet it wasn't that high, so Viktor just assumed his body was finally trying to take some steps out of omega space. He did need to get a thermometer later if it got worse.

Still, the alpha took a whiff of the air, and noticed his pheromones were gradually covering the room. He swiftly stood up from the bed and walked towards the windows. The smell must have been the cause to the omega's distress, Viktor figured, pushing the windows open so a little fresh air would ventilate the room.

While it was indeed his own bedroom, Viktor never let it catch too much of his self-deprecating scent. He didn't like to sleep with it, because it brought up nightmares more often than not. For the omega -with heightened senses and fragile subconscious as it was now-, it must have had a similar effect.

The kid relaxed into the pillows once more, and Makka also settled down, so Viktor went back around the bed to the chair and grabbed his phone from where he had tossed it earlier.

He skipped the few images of the blood splatters as there wasn't much written about them. He continued onto the dining room. There was a long table in pale wood, twelve chairs surrounding it. The walls were stacked of paintings; oil paintings, watercolors, colors ranging from simple greys to cheerful red, yellow and pink. Also, there were three shelves by the walls; one at the end of the room, while the other two were tucked into both sides of it. They had expensive looking china filling them, along with vases and a collection of tea spoons of different designs. Someone -probably the wife- had taken good care of them.

It would have had a homey feel to it, had the room not been as dark as it was. Damp had buckled through the carpeted flooring and blotched the walls with ugly, obscure patches. Again, it was remarked how every corner of the house was kept almost untouched and abandoned to the elements.

The notes said the door had been closed, and it took effort to push it open. The frame had swelled with the humidity, and spider webs and dust balls had greeted the officer that entered first. No one had been in that room for years, Viktor assumed.

It wasn't that surprising when Viktor read that nothing seemed out of place. The dust that had collected through the years showed nothing had been moved in a while.

Another groan tore Viktor's gaze away from his phone as he was about to go into the next room of the house. A following cough made the dog rise from her place and jump to the floor, letting her whole weight fall onto the rug there as she was annoyed the omega wasn't letting her sleep.

But the omega settled again, as if nothing had happened. The frown was still there, and one of his brows twitched every now and then from the images only him was able to see.

Viktor shrugged it off again. This time, however, he stood up from the chair he'd been sitting on and climbed up onto his bed. His bed, as in the place he normally slept in, until this omega had come into his life and he'd ended up sleeping on the floor with a bunch of pillows and the duvet from the guestroom.

Misfortunes of the job, it seemed.

The living room, where the scene of the video had taken place in, was surely a place where someone had put time doing it up. Brown leather sofas, sleek black coffee table, walls painted a desaturated moss green for one of those reasons only interior designers and women understand; it was a pretty open space that went merged into the hallway by a wide, empty door frame. Huge, floor-to-ceiling windows on the further wall showed a once cared-for garden, the same one that the backdoor lead to. The window at the front of the house had a small sill on the inside, where cushions had been put to make the house look lively from the outside.

Nothing out of place once more, save for the bullet holes found in different parts of the room.

Now for the bedrooms upstairs-

Viktor was startled up by the kid coughing uncontrollably. He rose from his place hurriedly to try and put the kid in a position in which he would be able to take enough air in. Viktor grabbed him by his shoulders and hoisted him up, grabbing his arms and pushing them over his head as high as the chains would let him. But the coughing fit didn't pass. Instead, it seemed to get worse and worse with every attempt to breath from the omega.

Victor began to panic, not knowing what else to do. He knew his heart was beating erratically, and the sight in front of his eyes did nothing to alleviate it. The omega's eyes had shot open when he woke, tears and snot covered his face and his cheeks had a deep tint of red coloring them from the lack of air.

Desperate for some oxygen, the omega's hands had found Viktor's legs, and he held onto them for dear life. The alpha couldn't blame him; he was just as scared, so he didn't mind the pain. It helped to ground him onto something else than the anguish and fright and oh-so-deep despair of not being able to do something.

He hadn't been expecting it when the kid threw up.

It missed him for a few inches, but the omega did it so suddenly that Viktor couldn't see it coming. The coughing continued after the small break, now accompanied with miserable dry-heaving and retching.

The smell was the first indication for Viktor of something being terribly wrong. Then, the looks of it. It was disgusting, really, yet the alpha had had lots of experience with people throwing up in his presence. It wasn't anything close to his brother Yuri's, when he was sick for something he'd eaten, nor had any similarity to his friend's when they'd drank too much.

The pale, yellowy tone and plain consistence of it told him something much different and much, much worse had happened instead of a common flu or intoxication.

He'd only seen it once before, with a guy who'd been found dead in his own flat, drowning on his own vomit.

The omega in front of him was having symptoms a drug withdrawal.

"Oh, for fuck's sake." Viktor was only able to say when the omega threw up again. This time, having been prepared for it, he was in a position in which he wouldn't choke with it.

Yet, as soon as the alpha deemed it possible, he scooped the omega into his arms and all but ran back to his car.

On his way to the hospital, he thought of calling Yakov to let him know what was going on. But he decided against it. He didn't need his boss screaming at him right now.

His last though, however, stayed in his mind for the whole trip.

The prosecution was going to love this.


	7. Support

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little brotherly love and insight to Viktor's and Yuri's childhood.  
> Hope you like it!

"Hold on, kid, we’re here" he whispered, his arms still wrapped around the omega's body.

In the frenzy that involved speeding a long way over the limit – a new record, considering the amount of times Viktor had over-pressed that pedal because he’d forgotten another important date-, he had dialed the nearest hospital, informing the situation of the kid in his passenger seat beforehand.

In the few minutes it took for Viktor to reach the hospital, he knew he’d never stressed so much in his life. Having the kid limp and irresponsive hadn’t seemed like that much of an issue before. Now that he knew it wasn’t just because of an omega drop, but a drug-induced state, he asked himself over and over again how he’d been so blind.

Later, he would just tell himself that telling those two situations apart was even hard for trained medical professionals. So no, there was actually no way anyone would have known.

And yet! Why hadn't he noticed sooner? That was all he could think about. Not the case, not the possibility of not being able to defend his client on the court, but the actual fear of letting him die was what fueled his need to do something fast.

And fast he went.

Pushing open the doors of the ICU, there was a team of nurses with a stretcher already prepared to take the kid inside.

He didn’t get to say anything when the weight of his body was taken away from his arms. The little warmth the omega emitted disappeared, and Viktor suddenly felt so alone and helplessly distressed that a pair of male nurses had to physically stop him from following the group while the omega was taken inside.

He barely managed to hear stuff like "Supposed withdrawal. Thrown up. Cold sweat. No identity." when the kid was already wheeled away.

How he ended up in a plastic chair in the waiting room with a Styrofoam cup of the worst coffee he’d ever drank was out of his comprehension.

The omega had been taken straight through 45 minutes ago and there had been no news since. While he'd been waiting, Viktor had texted Otabek. In one point, he’d remembered he should have told someone the kid had to be taken to the hospital. Legal stuff, because he was the omega's guardian, but at the same time wasn't? He just gave up and figured Otabek could deal with it.

**Need help ASAP. Kid is sick, took him to the ICU – Viktor.**

Yet instead of texting or calling back, Otabek showed up in person not even ten minutes after his text. He wasn't wearing his uniform. Weird.

What made everything stranger, though, was the mop of blonde hair he spotted bouncing behind him.

Oh great, Viktor sighed, slumping further down the uncomfortable plastic chair. He didn’t need his brother raging over… whatever the hell he always raged about. Yuri was in no means a calm person, and Viktor never actually paid that much attention to him when the insults began.

Yet, he was surprised to see this time was a little different.

He had not seen such an open display of worry - open in such a way only Viktor or possibly Yuri himself could tell - since they were children. His little brother was sulking from behind Otabek, watching him with his arms crossed over his chest. And, although he was frowning, the ire his face always pictured wasn’t there.

"Ah, Yuri, I feel like I should have known.” Viktor said, trying – and failing- to sound calm. “How come you brought him here of all places, Otabek?"

The Kazakh just shrugged with his usual deadpan. “It’s pretty hard to deny your brother’s requests.”

“I figured that much.” Viktor mumbled to himself and directed his attention to his brother. “But why here?”

“Because you are an asshole.” Yuri spat. Ah, there was the fierceness again.

When the alpha didn’t respond, Yuri came up stomping from behind Otabek, standing in front of Viktor and looking down upon him with new-found straightforwardness.

“What the hell is going on with you? You’ve never even called since you took this… stupidity of a case!” Yuri said, holding Viktor’s gaze steadily. Viktor bit his lip in an attempt to keep his pheromones at bay.

While Yuri might seem to have a hard shell on the outside, it wasn’t that difficult to see he had a soft side too. He was an omega, after all. Strong-willed, hot-headed, brave and everything else he could be described with, he still had a breaking point. Viktor, being there for him as a parental figure ever since their parents passed away all those years ago, had a huge influence over him. Words hurt twice as much if they came from his mouth, and sudden yet strong pheromones would subdue him more easily. Viktor didn’t want to be the cause of any of his brother’s breakdowns, so he had to control himself.

Yet, Otabek was almost just as important to Yuri. So, when his hand was put on the omega’s shoulder, his resolve seemed to crumble under the touch.

Yuri sighed, shoulders sagging, when Otabek caressed a spot near his neck. Viktor refrained from commenting on it, but he was still amazed at the display. He’d known from the beginning that Otabek would be good for Yuri, but he never expected that they would grow so close. It made his chest warm with happiness to know his brother had found such an amazing person to love.

Yuri looked back to where his boyfriend stood and nodded. The omega then moved to sit next to his brother on the cheap plastic chairs, Otabek following suit.

"I called your boss." Otabek said, choosing to ignore Yuri’s previous remark and going straight to the point. Leave it to this guy to be the sanest of the trio. Viktor didn't even know if the news made him feel any different from now.

"Was Ignatieff informed as well?"

Otabek shrugged. "I suppose so. The man is keeping tabs on everything case-related. He's worse than you." he added, huffing out a small laugh. But his expression suddenly changed, and Viktor found himself looking back into the eyes of police officer Altin instead. "What happened?"

Viktor gave a long sigh, picturing the scene on his head once more. "I'm not sure, Beka. We were at home, he... he was just sleeping while I checked some info. He was fine, or that’s what I thought. He was a little warm, and wouldn’t stay still. Then he threw up, and I knew I had to bring him here. I know a withdrawal when I see one.” His fingers squeezed and turned the Styrofoam cup in his hands. He didn’t even want to think about what could have happened if he hadn't. “I don't understand how though. I thought he was already coming out of omega space! What’s worse, the prosecution is totally going to use this against him.”

Otabek nodded. “They won’t go easy on him when they find out he’s a junkie.”

A sudden realization hit Viktor. He raised his head so fast that he made Yuri flinch in his place. His gaze was fixed on the other alpha, though.

"The kid's not a junkie.” Viktor whispered harshly. “But they'll think this was because he’s addicted! Oh, man, I can imagine the news already. They’ll believe the kid went and killed this guy for drugs, won’t they?” Otabek nodded slowly again, frowning at his rant. Viktor shook his head in exasperation, arms flailing to convey an idea he wasn’t voicing.

"So?"

“I don't know why, and I don't know how yet, but if there is one thing I'm a hundred percent sure of, Otabek, then it's that this omega is not responsible for this."

"Oh, for fucks sake. Not this again!" Yuri said, suddenly standing up. "Don't you even dare start!"

"What? What is it?" Viktor took in his brother's icy expression. He was genuinely confused as to why his brother had reacted that way.

"Viktor, come on. When are you going to make an attempt to look at the matter objectively? You're a lawyer, dammit! You know better than this!" Yuri continued loudly. Some people in the waiting room turned their heads to look at the group with various expressions. "You're losing your mind over an omega you just met!"

"What?" Viktor exclaimed again in disbelief and even more confusion than before. It just managed to fuel his brother's anger.

"The omega, Viktor! It's the only thing you've been thinking about these past few days! I bet you haven't even had a decent meal since you took him in!"

Viktor didn't feel his brother would believe him if he tried to tell him otherwise. But the fact that he was actually right about the food - he'd lived off fast food and coffee ever since he'd brought the omega home with him - made his chest tight with fury. How dare he assume what was going on in his life when he'd never actually experienced it himself?!

"You would understand if you gave him half a chance, Yuri." Viktor said through clenched teeth. "You more than any of us should know what a bad omega drop is like. Just imagine for a second if you had to be put through this nightmare in that state. I'm doing what I can to help, yet not even you have managed to understand my reasons. What I don't get is why you can't sympathize with him."

Looking at him, Yuri stepped closer to his brother. "I can't get to pity someone when they are trying to steal my brother away."

Viktor shook his head and scowled. "He is not trying to steal me away, Yuri. He's not even conscious of what's going on around him! Hell, the kid can't even speak to save himself!" he crossed one leg over the other, trying hard not to lose his cool over his own words. "Fuck, and you know he had nowhere else to go to. He has no known family, and the system doesn't even care for the fact that he's psychologically vulnerable; under the influence of drugs, to make matters worse!"

"Or maybe his family isn't around because they can't stand him either," Yuri offered.

"Yuri!" Otabek warned, a deep growl accompanying the name made Yuri slouch his shoulders. But it was too late already.

Viktor stood up at the comment, and Yuri's expression changed to one of fright for a fraction. Stepping back a little bit as to be closer to Otabek, he shook his head and looked straight to his brother's cold blue eyes again. "Viktor, I can't believe how blind you are to this guy. He comes into your life already desperate for your attention and, guess what? You just let him in! He's your client, and you haven't even heard his voice, yet you're falling hard for him! Have you even stopped for a second and thought, "shit, I'm living with a murderer" instead of drooling over his imaginary innocence?"

Viktor walked next to him, his head held high. He grabbed Yuri's arm to keep him from running away. Otabek made a motion to stand up and stop this, but Viktor raised his other hand in his direction. "I'm not stupid enough to hurt my own brother, Beka." he said sternly, not even looking at him. Otabek sat back down on the chair, letting out a growl that reminded Viktor how much trouble he could get into if he decided to make a wrong move. Viktor knew Otabek wouldn't think twice to act if he sensed Yuri was in danger, but right now, he needed to make his brother understand his own point of view too. Even if that meant making him a little nervous.

"No. That is not how it is," he said to Yuri angrily. "He did kill someone, accidentally or not. But I don't really care about any of that right now." Viktor's hold of his brother's arm tightened when he tried to look away. He continued. "What I do care about is that an omega in my care had a drug withdrawal, and is possibly battling for his life right now. I'm not going to justify his innocence to you; that is something that needs to be done at the courthouse. But don't try to vilify someone who just needs some extra attention. We've all been in a place where we needed someone to be taken care of. You were," he said almost accusingly.

Yuri didn't need to be reminded of those dark days when people were making his life hell because of his omegan dynamic. He refused to believe the other omega was dealing with anything like that, yet it was pretty hard not to. After all, it was indeed much worse than the bullying he went through at school. But he was just so mad that his brother had gotten involved!

"Yes, I was." he pointed out, swallowing the lump in his throat at the memories. "But suddenly this guy is much more important than everything else..."

"You know it's my job."

"Is it your job to ignore your brother when he's just trying to see if you're okay, too?" Yuri snapped, tears already forming in his eyes. Viktor's hold weakened for a second. "Have you even heard the shit everyone's saying about you and the omega? I know you don't watch the news that often, but… Fuck! I just don't-"

Yuri slapped Viktor's hand away with a swift movement, the sting barely registering in Viktor's mind. He was too busy going over his brother's words to care.

Yuri quickly walked away from him, furious. Otabek stood up too, following suit after his boyfriend and calling his name.

Yuri wasn't just jealous of the omega. He was actually scared of what the kid was doing to Viktor. The alpha found himself mentally facepalming at his brother's antics. Why did he have to be so slow to get to the point?

It was a strange feeling. He could count on three fingers the times Yuri had ever walked away from him willingly, and this was the third time. But Viktor was angry too, there was no doubt.

"Yura," Viktor said, jogging to keep up with his brother's furious stomping. "Yuri!"

He dodged Otabek, who stayed a little behind when Viktor approached, knowing the conversation wasn't over yet. Viktor managed to reach Yuri just before he reached the doors leading outside.

"What?" Yuri asked, coming to a stop again and turning toward him. Tears were falling freely from his eyes, and Viktor felt like he had been hit by a car. He hated seeing his brother cry.

Viktor raised his hands slowly, keeping guard on Otabek's movements from the corner of his gaze, and put them both on Yuri's shoulders, pulling him close.

"I don't want to fight with you." He said, almost in a whisper. "I get you're worried about me, Yuri, but I can take care of myself. You have to trust my decisions, too. With everything that has been going on- You know how much I need a steady support right now." A pause, watching Yuri's eyes widening and more tears falling. "Do you trust me?"

"I don't trust him." Yuri mumbled.

"No Yura, I asked if you trusted me." Viktor insisted.

"Yes, I trust you, but I don't-"

"If you trust me, then you trust my judgment," he said. "I love you, Yura. You're my brother, the only one I have. Nobody is going to threaten that or change it."

Yuri averted his eyes in response and Viktor reached out to take his chin in his hand, staring into his soft blue eyes. "Yuri, I love you. Do you trust that?"

"Yes..."

Viktor cut in again before he could add anything else. "Then that is all we need to concern ourselves with. You trust me. You shouldn't be worrying about anything else. Okay?"

Yuri stared at him for a long moment. He would never trust that other omega Viktor had brought home, but he did trust his own brother with his life. He sighed in defeat. "Okay."

Viktor then gave him a blinding smile and Yuri couldn't help getting that warm feeling he always got when his brother acknowledged him. Viktor was never one to stay upset for long, yet the fact that he would put Yuri over his own self-loathing made his chest swell with happiness.

"Now come here," Viktor said and pulled the young man into his arms. They hugged for a long moment, Yuri inhaling the familiar scent of his brother that always managed to calm him down after a bad breakdown. Even when they had parted for their own ways, he'd always longed for these hugs. His omegan instincts be dammed, he felt at ease with Viktor's alpha scent.

It lasted until Yuri caught a whiff of something that made his nose scrunch up. "Ugh, Viktor! He barfed on you!" he exclaimed, pushing the alpha away and rubbing his nose furiously.

Viktor chuckled. "I might have forgotten to mention I wasn't able to, uh, evade most of it while I carried the guy here." he said. "Fuck me, it will be impossible to remove the smell from my room."

"You left your house without cleaning up?" Yuri said, making a disgusted face. "That's gross!"

"Yeah, you should’ve seen-"

"Excuse me," Viktor was suddenly interrupted by a deep voice coming from behind him. He turned around and was met with a doctor that looked too young and inexperienced to be one. "Are you here with the omega that came in an hour or so ago?"

Viktor stiffened with the question, his demeanor changing immediately to the serious one he used on court.

"Yes. I'm his temporary guardian." Viktor said, his voice straining at the beginning. "Viktor Nikiforov."

The doctor nodded swiftly, as if he had already known that. Who wouldn't, though? His case had been in the spotlight long before Viktor was even brought into this mess. "Michel Carter, I'm the doctor in charge." he said. "The omega is in a really delicate state, I'm not going to lie to you. Though I'll allow myself to say, he has a great chance of survival."

"What exactly happened to him, doctor?"

The man shook his head. "I'm sorry, but we haven't been able to narrow it down just yet. Apart from the fact that he's in a drop, which potentially makes his condition worse, there are a bunch of other factors that might have led to him being in this state. Partial screenings show the remains of a type of benzo, for starters."

"Anxiety drugs?" Viktor asked in disbelief, brows furrowing at the thought. Was it even possible to have such a bad withdrawal with those? They were prescription drug on top of it all, weren't they?

"Certainly. He had high levels of them in his blood, showing he has been dependent on them for quite a long time and was suddenly cut off." The doctor explained. Viktor suddenly wished he had brought a notepad or something with him. He should be writing this down as evidence.

"But, is he going to be okay?"

"The following hours will be critical to determine that. But you did bring him at a good time, Mr. Nikiforov. It wasn't too late for him yet."

"Thank god" Viktor muttered, letting out a sigh of relief. He was suddenly aware of how exhausted he felt, now that he was finally able to relax. Maybe he needed to go back home and sleep for a bit.

Dr. Carter walked away after informing Viktor of the procedures he needed his signature for, to which he replied he would send him a copy of the judge's certificate as soon as possible.

Out of the corner of his eye, the alpha saw Otabek bringing his phone to his ear, and then suddenly turned away and started pacing around. Turning back to where his brother was waiting, he realized Yuri was watching him with concern.

"How did that go?"

"The doctor thinks he'll be alright," Viktor answered courtly.

Yuri eyed him suspiciously. "Then what's wrong with you?"

"I just think there's something shady going on here." Viktor answered with a grave voice. "Hey, remember when you had to take diazepam? Don't look at me like that, Yuri."

He huffed, rolling his eyes at the last commentary. "Yeah. I remember. Why?"

"They said the omega had quite a high dosage of benzos, don't know if the same kind as the ones you took, though."

"And?"

"How did you feel when you took them?" Viktor questioned, hating the way Yuri recoiled at the question. "Sorry, I know you didn't like them."

"Huh, that's an understatement, if me flushing the whole bottle down the toilet didn't give you any idea." he stated, briefly looking away. At his brother's chuckle, he looked back with a smile of his own. "It felt pretty weird, actually. I was always tired, and while I could concentrate a lot better if I had taken them, it was as if someone else was doing the thinking. I wasn't myself when I took them."

"But they were for anxiety, weren't they?"

"Yeah, and hyperactivity. They helped me calm down for a while, until the omega hormones kicked in." He shrugged. "But I can't imagine someone getting hooked on them, though."

"I don't think it's that hard. I mean, it was pretty nasty for you because you practically can't live without moving around constantly. But for some people with anxiety, maybe it's a nice feeling to be finally free of stress."

"Could be." Yuri answered, pensively, and then smirked to himself. "Not for me though, I already went through that phase." Viktor laughed, ruffling his brother's hair with glee. "Hey! Stop that, asshole!"

"Sorry! But it just seemed like just the thing to do."

"It's nice seeing you two having fun." they both suddenly heard. Turning his head around, Viktor saw Otabek had walked back to them. Yuri tried to fix his hair in a hurry, and Viktor felt the need to mess with it again. He loved the feel of his brother's soft, long hair, and watching him struggle to make it look nice just because Otabek was there was hilarious.

He kind of missed his own long hair, now that he thought of it. But short hair did give him more of a lawyer-like image, and his line of work practically lived off appearances. 

Viktor quickly brushed the thought away; he was really out of focus today. The idea of going back home and taking a nap seemed really promising at this point.

"Viktor?" he blinked once, realizing Yuri was talking to him.

"Yeah?" he answered absentmindedly.

Yuri had the look of concern back.

"Are you alright?"

"I- Yeah, why?"

"You don't really seem to be." He said, and Otabek nodded next to him.

Viktor groaned, rubbing a hand through his face.

"I don't really have the energy to discuss that as much as I want to. I'm not going to lie."

"Then go home and sleep!" Yuri exclaimed, arms going high up into the air. "Man, I was waiting for the opportunity to say this; you look like shit."

"Thanks." Viktor could only say, rolling his eyes. "But I really shouldn't. I don't think I should leave until the kid is stabilized. He is my responsibility after all."

"Not really," Otabek commented, holding up his phone and swiping through the contacts without looking up. "Well, the part about him being your responsibility is, virtually. But it's no problem if you go and take a breather for a bit. Ah, here it is." He raised the phone to Viktor's face, and said "This guy right here is supposed to keep watch on the kid during his stay in the hospital. I gave him your number so he could contact you if anything came up. He's already stationed outside the omega's room."

"What? When did you-?"

"When you texted me. I'm pretty fast." Otabek interrupted, smirking.

Viktor turned his look to his brother, and muttered "Your boyfriend scares me," while covering the side of his mouth with his hand.

"I can be even scarier if you don't go home right this instant. As much as I hate to say it, if you're really going to defend this guy until your own doom, you need to be as prepared as possible." Yuri growled.

"Aww, you do care!" Viktor sing-sang, causing Yuri to blush a deep shade of red. The alpha could practically see the steam flowing off his ears.

"Go home already, for fuck's sake!"

All in all, both Yuri and Otabek had to practically push Viktor into his car for him to finally leave. He struggled to at least leave his number on the reception desk, or getting the other officer's number so he could call and check on the omega whenever he needed. Yet his pleads were ignored.

When he got home, he didn't even bother going to his room and try to clean up the mess that was there. Instead, he passed out the second he touched his couch.


	8. Questions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this is an improvement.  
> Two chapters in two days?! I must be going crazy. But I already had half of this chapter ready, and to be honest, that last chapter was a bit lame in terms of plot-development.  
> This one is juicier, since we introduce some new evidence about the case.  
> Also, character development! (Because the original characters are kind of flying around in this AU with only one specific purpose to their existence, and I kind of got to love them for who they are, but I haven't found a moment to tell you why so you'd feel the same, sooooo).  
> Hope you like it!

 He was woken up by the annoying ringtone he'd put on his phone so he couldn't ignore it. He groaned the sleep off, a little disorientated and dizzy, and put the device to his ear.

"Hello?" he mumbled, suppressing a yawn. "Viktor Nikiforov speaking."

"Not awake yet, huh?" he heard, Otabek's voice piercing through the sleepy haze clouding his brain.

"Why could officer Altin be calling for at-" he looked at the wristwatch he had forgotten to take off before passing out and gasped, "five thirty in the fucking morning?! What the hell?"

"Argue as much as you want but I have some juicy information you might enjoy." Otabek said, chuckling.

"What could be better than sleeping until the sun rises?" Viktor huffed out, and the yawn that he was trying to suppress finally escaped from his mouth.

"We found a guy lurking around Denisovich's house three hours ago." He said, and Viktor was suddenly awake against all odds. "We figured you might want to come and take a look for yourself."

He did. It was the second day in a row he had sped up through the highway. Viktor briefly thought it was becoming a bad habit for him, but again, it was just part of the job.

Ignatieff was waiting outside the station at a quarter to seven. Normally the police wouldn’t have lent them in —officially, all they were there for was to hear out the suspect although the session would be transcribed and sent to them by fax—but this was Ignatieff’s case too, and he needed to keep his eyes glued to the prosecutor. If he didn’t, he could come up with arguments that Viktor wasn’t prepared to hear. As a bonus, the police liked lawyers who are involved, and if Viktor managed to get on their good side, he would have a shot at the fast track if he needed it.

That meant getting a first look into the house.

It was still dark, just that cold pre-dawn thinning of the darkness that leaches the last tiredness out of your bones, and the air had chilly a bite to it. The light of the station entrance was a warmthless, stuttering white. Ignatieff was leaning against the wall next to the seats, with an industrial-size paper cup in each hand, kicking a crumple of tinfoil back and forth between his feet. He looked pale and baggy-eyed, but he was awake and wearing a clean shirt—it was just as expensive as the one he used in court, and Viktor gave himself points for having thought of dressing up well that morning, or he could have looked pretty out of place. He even had his tie hidden in his pocket just in case.

“Morning” Ignatieff said once he’d noticed Viktor, and handing him one of the cups. “Thought you might want this. Tastes like washing-up liquid, though. Police station quality.”

“Thanks,” Viktor said, taking a sip. It was coffee, give or take.

“How was yesterday?” He asked, and Viktor shrugged.

“Would’ve been better if the kid had given me any kind of indication beforehand.”

“Rough day, huh?”

Another shrug, and he looked down at the tinfoil that Ignatieff was kicking. Viktor realized that he had actually never discussed the situation of the omega with him. Was it proper for him to tell Ignatieff what was going on, or should he just wait till the meeting with him to go over the evidence?

But Ignatieff didn’t press the matter further.

“The detectives said they had already cleared the house.”

“Good.” Viktor leaned against the wall next to him and tried to get the coffee into him: one hint of a yawn and the officers would boot him out the door. “How did the patrol around the house go? Apart from this guy, obviously.”

“Well, I think. They picked up a few cars coming into the town, but all the plates checked out to Lipedrov addresses: just people heading home. A bunch of teenagers met up in one of the houses down the other end from Denisovich, brought a couple of bottles with them, played their music loud. Around half past two there was a car going around and around, slow, and they caught this guy trying to sneak from the back. That was the lot.” Ignatieff said, taking a sip. “You’re satisfied that this dodgy guy had been prowling around, or-?”

“Unless he was really unlucky to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, yeah. I’d say so.” Viktor answered. He really hoped this guy had something to do with the case. Another shady individual could really get the attention away from his client for the time being.

“This faith of yours is remarkable, Viktor.” He said, and Viktor shrugged.

“I trust my clients. Even if they have drugs in them, Ignatieff.” Viktor responded, giving him a pointed look. But Ignatieff just chuckled with no malice.

“It’s Philip, Viktor. No need for such formalities. Right now, we’re just two guys sharing a poor excuse of a coffee.”

Viktor just softened his expression enough for Ignatieff to think he wasn’t being weary.

“No more media crap?” Ignatieff shook his head. “I thought they’d be going after the neighbors.”

“Probably off looking for loved ones to hassle; juicier stuff there. It looks like the press office has them under control, for now anyway. I had a quick look of the early editions: nothing we didn’t already know, and nothing about your client being sick either. We won’t be able to keep that to ourselves much longer, though.” Ignatieff said, as if it didn’t concern him one bit.

Yesterday, right before the session at court, every front page had run with yet another horrifying headline and a shot of a younger and handsome Denisovich. They’d found some stories about the man about his time in the army; how he’d saved hundreds of lives in the war, how inspirational his labor was to his companions, and they even put a story in which he adopted a dog that followed him everywhere and brought smiles to the dying soldier’s faces. Even Viktor got a little emotional over those.

But at least no one had anything to add up to the horrible image the media portrayed of his client.

Maybe today the newspapers would be satisfied with the image of the omega in court, when he was attacked by Denisovich's son. Or the picture of Viktor's desperate face when Ignatieff pulled off that video.

He shook his head trying not to think about it.

Ignatieff started to say something else, but a yawn cut him off.

“Got any sleep?” Viktor asked.

“Not really. I’m going over Denisovich’s whole life at the army, but I haven’t found anything that could help to my arguments. Also, I’m living in a new house-” he laughed at himself. “Well, new for me, old as fuck to the world. Jenny loved it. But the countryside’s bloody noisy, did you know that? Everyone gives it loads about the peace and quiet, but that’s just a fairytale. The forest, and there were like a hundred bats throwing a party, and mice or something running around, all through the house.”

Viktor laughed.

“Too creepy for you?”

Ignatieff gave him a wry sideways grin. “I managed not to scare my children through the night. Even if it’d been quiet, I wanted to be awake. Just in case. I watched that scary movie the other day, about the deaf girl alone in her house, you know?”

Viktor had indeed seen it. He’d loved the suspense of not being able to know where the murderer was going to appear from.

“I follow.” He answered. “Didn’t know you had kids. How are they doing? With the media and shit, I mean.”

Philip sighed. “All right. I think they haven’t followed me home because of my family. But I’m a bit wrecked, though. My wife firmly believes your client is a godsend. She doesn’t trust a man with a gun laying around in plain sight.”

“Well, you could do with some talk from your wife.” Viktor joked, and Ignatieff laughed.

“Nah, work is work. But really, it’s been a wreck. Though I’m not going to crash out halfway through the interrogation or anything. What about you, anyways? The officers have some rumors lying around about you ready to pass out yesterday.”

Viktor rolled his eyes. “Otabek.” He muttered under his breath. He turned back to look at Philip. “Nothing major, really. My brother and his boyfriend hauled me out of the hospital and left another officer to watch over the kid so I could sleep a bit. Other than the panic when the kid threw up on me, and having to drive through Russian traffic at peak hour with a sick omega, just the usual hassle.”

“We can get a session later this week to discuss this some more, yeah? Think you can summarize your stuff to get a global overview for Friday?”

“Little more of this” he tilted the coffee cup, “and yeah, sure I can.”

Ignatieff drank his coffee, with an unconscious grimace on each sip, and considered that. “You think this guy knows something?”

“I think there’s a good chance he does, yeah. Who would be lurking near the house of a dead man without a good reason?”

Ignatieff nodded. “And for all we know he’s been watching the house for a lot longer than when all this shit happened. He managed to evade the bear traps in the garden.”

“Bear traps?” Viktor asked in disbelief, and Philip nodded.

“The detectives found them yesterday, hidden under piles of leaves.”

The alpha frowned.

“But why have them? There are not that many bears in that area. Foxes and squirrels, sure, but bears?”

“Who knows? To hunt down, I don’t know, rebels or something?” Philip added, shrugging. “The guy fought a war, I don’t know what the hell was going on inside his head.”

On the horizon, the outline of low hills was starting to take shape, darker against darkness. It was five to seven.

Viktor said, “Have you ever not liked the guy you’d had to fight for before?” Ignatieff shook his head, but the alpha knew he'd hit a weak spot right there.

He said, “No. I mostly work with assholes, as you already must know, and I’ve had many cases in which I really would’ve left the accused go unpunished, had it not been for what some laws have stated. Though it’s not why I chose this case. Denisovich’s family contacted me, and it kind of reminded myself of what I went through when my dad passed away.”

“I get you.” Viktor said somberly. “My parents were killed by a drunk driver." He didn't elaborate much. The memory of it was enough to make him shudder. "The guy only had to pay a hefty amount of money and he was left to roam around free of charge. The helplessness is what gets you, most of the times. That, and the fact that my little brother hadn’t even finished high school when it happened.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, Viktor.” Philip said, putting a hand on Viktor’s shoulder for reassurance. “Working in this area does bring some justice back though, doesn’t it?”

“It does, yeah, but it’s not usually like this. This is going to be bad.” Viktor crushed his paper cup into a ball and tossed it at the bin with a hard-downward snap of his wrist. “Let’s go, our guy’s waiting.”

 

* * *

 

Otabek and Ivan guided both lawyer and prosecutor into a small observation room, told them to keep quiet, and closed the door behind them. Viktor was surprised when he saw both of them again, and asked why they always were there when it was case related.

“Didn’t you know? I’m in charge of this case.”

“Weren’t you just a police officer?” Viktor asked, frowning.

“I took the test to become a detective, like, six months ago, Viktor.” Otabek said, and Viktor had to resist the urge to pat his back and congratulate him. It wasn’t the occasion.

He stood silent in one corner of the room, next to Ignatieff, listening intently how the two officers discussed the course of action. They could watch the guy from there, through the one-way glass.

It was the first-time Viktor had had a proper look at him. Messy brown hair, high cheekbones, a chin with a couple of days’ worth of stubble; he was wearing a black duffle coat that must have had quite a lot of use, a heavy gray jumper and faded jeans, hiking boots, all dressed up for a night of stalking.

He was younger than Viktor had thought, and taller—mid-twenties, and not far off six foot—but he was so thin that he looked like the last stages of a hunger strike. It was the thinness that had minimized him into something younger, smaller, harmless. Also, the fact that he was a beta. Had it been an alpha, Viktor believed he wouldn’t have looked so defenseless.

He sat hunched rigidly in the uncomfortable chair, staring down at his fists on the table like he was bracing himself for torture. He hadn’t even glanced around the room to get his bearings.

Otabek said, “What do we know about him?”

And Viktor quickly grabbed his notebook and a pen from his pocket, ready to absorb every bit of information that reached his ears.

Ivan was watching so intently that his nose was practically touching the glass. “He’s not on anything. At first I was thinking he could be on cocaine or something, because he’s so skinny, but no.”

“Not right now, anyway. That’s good for us: if we get anything, we don’t want him saying it was the drugs talking. What else?”

“Loner. Nocturnal. Judging from what happened last night. He didn’t bring a car.”

“Right. Everything says he’s more comfortable keeping his distance from other people, rather than making close contact—he got his info by watching. So, when it comes time to push him, we want to get in close, get in his face, both of us at once. Overwhelm him. Anything else?”

“No wedding ring. More than likely he lives alone: no one to notice when he’s out all night or ask him what he’s at.”

“Which would have its upside and its downside, as far as we’re concerned.” Otabek nodded, “No flat mate to testify that he was home the day of the crime, though.”

The guy stirred, groped at his face, rubbed clumsily at his mouth. His lips were swollen and cracked, like he had gone a long time without water.

“Just going by the clothes, I’d say middle-class.” Ivan added, ignoring the movement.

“So would I. And he’s never been in the system before” Otabek turned around, facing Viktor and Ignatieff, “His prints came up clean.” He said, and looked back at Ivan. “He probably doesn’t even know anyone who’s ever been in the system. He’s got to be disoriented and scared. We want to get him as relaxed as we can, see how far that takes us, then scare the life out of him when it comes to the big push. The good thing is, he won’t walk out on us before then. Middle-class guy, probably got respect for authority, doesn’t know the system, doesn’t know he can have the lawyers of the case watching him. He’ll stay until we kick him out.”

“Yeah. Probably he will.” Ivan was drawing absent, abstract patterns in the mist his breath had left on the glass.

The tips of Viktor’s fingers were prickling with how much he wanted things to get started.

“We’ll let him wonder for another five minutes,” Otabek said. “Then you go in.”

Ivan took a step away from the glass and stared at him with raised eyebrows.

“Just me?”

“He’ll see you as less of a threat than me. Nearer his age.” And there was the dynamic, too, Viktor thought to himself. A nice middle-class beta boy could easily discount an inner-city kid like Ivan as some clueless fellow beta. In between dynamics, they all knew how each other worked.

“Just settle him, Ivan. That’s all. Find out his name, if you can. Get him a cup of tea. Don’t go anywhere near the case, and for the love of everything, don’t let him ask for a lawyer. I’m having enough with this bastard on my back.” Otabek said, grimacing at the smile Viktor launched his way. He then ignored him with a roll of his eyes. “I’ll give you a few minutes with him, and then I’ll come in. okay?”

He pulled off his jacket and put it on a chair, leaving him narrow and gangly as a teenager in a long-sleeved T-shirt that had been washed thin. He stood at the glass, no fidgeting, and watched the guy hunch lower over the table until Otabek checked his watch and said, “Go.”

Then he ran a hand through his hair, got two cups of water from the cooler, and went.

Unable to stay still, Viktor walked forward with Ignatieff following in tow.

“You think we’ll get a confession out of him?” Ignatieff suddenly asked Otabek, but he sighed.

“Most of them never confess. You can show them their prints all over the weapon, the victim’s blood all over their clothes and CCTV footage of them whacking the victim over the head, and they’ll still be spewing out innocence.” Otabek answered with barely any emotion in his voice.

Ignatieff didn’t add anything, so they all settled to watch Ivan work his magic. He went into the room holding out a cup and saying, “Sorry, man, I meant to bring this in to you before, only I got caught up- Is that all right for you? Would you have a cup of tea instead, yeah?”

Viktor was surprised to hear the sudden change of tone that was so different from the one he’d heard with Otabek. The dynamic thing had occurred to him too, it seemed. Betas tended to be overly serviceable and cheerful, and it did show when Ivan exaggerated it.

The man had jumped half out of his skin when the door opened, and he was still catching his breath. He shook his head.

Ivan hovered, looking worried. “You sure? Coffee?” Another head-shake. “You’ll let me know if you need more of this, yeah?” The guy nodded and reached for the water.

“Thanks,” He said, so low Viktor barely heard him.

“No problem. Detective Ivan Moskovsky.” He held out a hand. The man didn’t take it.

To Viktor, he looked too confused to even process what was going on. He’d seen these kinds of interrogations before – usually from the other side of the room, with his client next to him, but this time was different because neither of them were defending this guy-, and normally the suspect would be bombarded with questions from the beginning. It seemed this one had been expecting those, too.

“Do I have to tell you my name?” his voice was low and even with a slight rough edge like it hadn’t got much use lately.

“The accent gives me nothing; he could be from anywhere.” Otabek murmured towards them, eyes glued to the glass. Viktor heard the squeak of a pen brushing paper, realizing Ignatieff had written that, and went to scribble it down himself.

Ivan looked surprised. “Do you not want to? Why not?”

The guy sighed, defeated, and looked to Ivan, with a mechanical handshake: “Cole.”

“Cole what?” A fraction of a second.

“Smirnov”

“It isn’t. We already ran that name through the system.” Otabek growled from their side of the glass. “But that doesn’t really matter. Come morning we will find either his house or his car, or both, and among other things, his ID.”

All they needed for now was something to call him, Viktor noticed.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Smirnov. Detective Altin will be here in a while, then we can get started.” Ivan leaned his body on a corner of the table, putting up an act of serenity and easy-goingness. Probably to make the guy -Cole- believe he wasn’t in trouble just yet.

“He doesn’t know we’re already studying him,” Viktor murmured, mostly to himself, but Otabek heard it too. He nodded.

“Most people think their interrogations have a start and end that goes from the first question to the moment they are left alone. We use that all the time to get information while they’re unaware.”

Ignatieff laughed from Viktor’s side. “You guys are evil.” He said, and Otabek smirked.

“It’s what we do.”

“I’ll tell you now,” they heard Ivan say after a few seconds. “I’m only delighted you showed up. I was dying to get out of that place. I know people pay good money to go camping up by the forest and all, but the countryside isn’t my style, know what I mean?”

Cole shrugged, a small, jerky movement. “It’s peaceful.”

“I’m not mad about peaceful. City boy, me; give me the noise and the traffic any day. And I was freezing my arse off, as well. You’re from up there, aren’t you?” Cole glanced up sharply, but Ivan was slugging at his water and watching the door, as if he was just making small talk while he waited for Otabek.

Cole said, “No one’s from Lipedrov these days. They just move there.”

“That’s what I meant: are you living there, yeah? Man, I can’t imagine having to get up every day to those old, abandoned houses.”

They waited, all mild harmless curiosity, until Cole said, “No. Yekaterinburg.” Not local, then, Viktor wrote. Too far east-south from either St. Petersburg or Lipedrov to be there incidentally.  Ivan had knocked out one angle and saved everyone a lot of hassle right there.

Ivan raised his cup in a cheerful toast. “Up the Yekts. No better place to escape from the cold.”

Another shrug. “I’d live up the country. Depending.” Ivan hooked an ankle around a spare chair and pulled it over for his feet, getting comfortable for an interesting chat.

“Would you, seriously? Depending on what?” Cole wiped a palm up his jaw, hard, trying to pull it together: Ivan was nudging him off balance, poking little holes in his concentration. “Don’t know. If you had a family. Space for the kids to play.”

“Ah,” Ivan said, pointing a finger at him. “There you go, see. I’m a single man. Beta, you know? Not much for an alpha, or a commitment with an omega either: I need somewhere I can get a few drinks in, meet a few fellow beta girls for a one night stand. Can’t live without that, know what I mean?”

Cole huffed. “That gets old, the going out. You stop wanting it.”

Ivan’s hands went up. “Take your word for that, man. What do you start wanting instead?”

“Something to come home to. A wife. Kids. A bit of peace. The simple stuff.” It moved through his voice, slow and heavy, like a shadow looming under dark water: grief. For the first time, Viktor felt a flick of empathy for the guy.

Ivan held up crossed index fingers. “Sooner you than me,” he said cheerfully.

“You just wait.”

“I’m twenty-two. Long while to go before the biological clock kicks in.”

“Just wait. Nightclubs, all the girls made up to look exactly like each other, everyone pissed off so they can act like someone they’re not. After a while, it will make you sick.”

“Ah. Got burned, yeah? Brought home a babe and woke up with a wolf?” Ivan was grinning.

Cole said, “Maybe. Something like that.”

“Been there, man. Alcohol’s a bastard. So where do you go looking for chicks, if the clubs don’t do it for you?”

Shrug. “I don’t go out much.”

He was starting to turn his shoulder to Ivan, block him out, and their time was up. Otabek suddenly moved and went for the interview room with a bang. Sweeping the door open, spinning a chair over to face Cole—Ivan slid off the table and into a chair next to him, fast—throwing himself back in it, putting his cuffs on the table.

“Cole,” he said, sharply. “I don’t know about you, but I’d love to get this sorted out fast enough that we can all get some sleep tonight. What do you say?”

Otabek had been right to send Ivan in first. He had been relaxed and done a beautiful job, in Viktor’s opinion. He was willing to bet that Cole had gone into that room with the intention of keeping his lip firmly zipped, for years if necessary, yet Ivan had taken him out of that shell in a matter of minutes.

Every detective had knacks, little things that they did better than anyone else around. In that field of work, they all know who to call if they want a witness reassured by the expert, or a quick bit of intimidation done right. Ivan had one of the rarest knacks of all, Viktor knew. He could make a witness believe, against all the evidence, that they were just two people talking; that Ivan was seeing not a solve in the making, not a bad guy who needed locking up for the good of society, but another human being.

“It seems the real show starts now, Viktor.” Ignatieff said, grabbing a chair from the back of the room and pushing it closer to the window. “These guys are really scary.”

“Don’t know how my brother manages to keep this guy at bay.” Viktor said, absentmindedly. “Though I believe it could be mutual.”

Ignatieff laughed at him. “People are not always the same. Inside and outside four walls make a huge difference.”

“Let’s just hope this guy will show us who he really is.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can see, Ignatieff is not a heartless bastard, he just seems like it because he is too good at what he does.  
> Ivan is a godsend and must be protected at all costs.  
> Otabek is a heartless, cheeky bastard.  
> Viktor is as oblivious as ever.  
> Thank you for reading!


	9. Thoughts

“So, he knows nothing at all.” Viktor huffed out with his head between his hands, not even looking at Otabek.

The other alpha sighed.

“We got the DNA from the paper cup and the place his car is parked. That enough gives us a lot to work with if he is indeed involved.”

Cole had been still and taut the rest of the interview, hands spread flat on the table as he answered question after question that both Ivan and Otabek asked.

It wasn’t mechanical; the guy had been nervous as hell, stuttering out words and facts that even he didn’t seem to believe. In the end, the only piece of valuable information they’d gathered was that the guy usually went hunting with a bunch of friends that were from the area, and that he'd gone out that night.

“We’d always wait for this old man to go to sleep. He came out with his rifle in the middle of the first hunt, and threatened to shoot us for trespassing,” he had said, once Otabek had cornered him saying they could take legal action for hunting in illegal grounds, amongst other violations to state property. It was, supposedly, the reason why he’d kept his name secret to that point. “It was the best spot we’d found in ages! And that crazy old man wasn’t even supposed to be hunting there either! It was his spot, he'd said. But my friend, he- he told us he knew the guy’s routine. He studied the times when he’d go out hunting, or stay at home. So, yesterday, I went by myself. He normally keeps the kitchen lights on, so I wanted to make sure he was there before going into the forest.”

Apparently, he didn’t know that the old man had been killed four days prior. It was hard to imagine Cole hadn’t watched the news for that long.

“We’ll get more out of him once we check his car for traces of the omega,” Otabek stated, looking down at Viktor with his arms crossed.

It was nine am, and Viktor was already downing his second cup of coffee for the day.

“And if you don’t find any?”

“Then he is free to go." He stopped himself. "Well, we do have to write down that he went hunting out of season and in unauthorized state property on his file.” Viktor groaned once more. “Stop being like that, man. You know we can’t just keep the guy locked in here!”

“I’m just mad, you know?” Viktor said, finally raising his head. “I thought this was it; this guy was gonna give us all the answers we needed.”

"And your client was going to come out clean after this?" Viktor glanced up and raised a noncommittal eyebrow. "You know that shit only happens on TV, Viktor! You're a lawyer, you should know that."

"Yet I feel like I should be knowing more than I do!" he barked out, shaking his head. "Yeesh, every single one of you is telling me the same. _Oh, you should know better than that._ Well, screw me, I'm a man with hopes."

"Who is everyone?"

"Yakov, Yuri, Ignatieff. You know the drill."

"Then maybe you should begin considering why everyone is telling you that on the first place."

"I know, I'm aware of that. It's just- damn it." Viktor shrugged, a complicated, almost embarrassed squirm. "Hunting, though. Denisovich kept a rifle for hunting. And bear traps? Did you know about those?"

"I almost lost my leg to one. Gotta thank Ivan for my wholeness." Viktor stared at him with a raised eyebrow once more, unamused. "What? Of course we made the connection, you asshole. Now you're questioning my job."

"You didn't have a problem questioning mine back then." Viktor murmured, drifting off towards the end when Otabek rolled his eyes. He smirked. "I'm just saying, it's weird!" Wait a minute, "Why don't the news say that the man had a rifle to obliterate cute, fluffy beings of the woods-"

"And bears." Otabek added, and Viktor huffed.

"-and bears," he agreed. "instead of his honorable career as a soldier? I mean, I have nothing against that, but they're just making him look like a saint. Do saints hunt bears, Beka?"

Otabek laughed.

"You're making no sense right now."

"Nothing is, to be honest."

Viktor then stood up, throwing the empty cup in the trash-can beside the seats. He gave Otabek a quick pat on the shoulder. "I don't know about you, but I think I'll be better off doing some work of my own."

Otabek chuckled. "You bet. Just don't do anything that would make your brother mad."

"Oh, Beka, that's a hard thing to ask for." Viktor said, already starting to walk away.

At the end of the corridor, the see-through doors were still bleary with the hesitant rays of sunshine appearing on the horizon. But once outside, the chill wasn't as bad as Viktor had expected. Maybe it was the feeling of youthful energy that followed him after every small defeat, mind already working through possible explanations and arguments he could use once the date for the next session was established.

Although he had been tired before, he felt wide awake now. Straight-backed and strong, rock solid resolve, ready for whatever would come.

 

* * *

 

Viktor had finally loaded the last of his soiled beddings when the doorbell to his house rang.

Makkachin barked excitedly at the sound, bolting out of the laundry room and waging her tail from side to side. He hadn't been expecting anyone at this hour -eleven thirty, who even visited at this time?-, and the possibility of it being Yakov seemed remote. Viktor had called in for a day off to sort things out on his own, and he had skipped countless sick days for the sake of whatever case he was working in at the time, so his boss wouldn't come to his house and bitch about it. Or would he?

When he reached the entrance, he saw Makkachin scratching and pounding the door with her paws, and her tail still wagged frantically with curiosity. Viktor caught sight of himself in the small mirror on top of the entrance table and cringed, stopping in his tracks for a second.

He was wearing the shirt from that morning, now completely wrinkled and buttoned incorrectly, over a pair of worn-out sweat shorts. His hair was matted back with a thick blue headband to keep his bangs out of his eyes, and he wasn't even wearing socks!

The bell chimed once more, impatiently, and Makka's barking became more insisting.

"Coming!"

Viktor knew he looked ridiculous. Yet, he had an image to maintain.

He quickly removed the headband, combing his hair and fixing the fringe as best as he could with his own hands. Then, he tried straightening the shirt a little with almost no results. He sighed, looking at himself in the mirror once more.

At least it would seem like he just got out of bed.

Viktor walked the distance to the door and leaned over his dog, looking through the peephole to see who it was.

Fixing himself up be dammed, he thought when he saw who it was.

"No way in hell!" he exclaimed in English, hearing back a deep chuckle from the other side.

He fumbled with the lock, shoving Makka away in the process so that she wouldn't get hurt in the frenzy. His hands moved jerkily and uncoordinatedly with excitement fueling his limbs. Once he finally managed to unlock the door, he threw it wide open, not caring for a second the appearance he had.

"Never thought I'd live up to see the great Viktor Nikiforov in pajamas. I'm one lucky guy." The other person said, also in English, with harmless sarcasm while looking up and down. "Though I must say; I like what I'm seeing."

"You sneaky bastard, Chris!" Viktor exclaimed happily, stretching his arms wide open to hug his alpha friend. Chris imitated him, and soon they were embracing each other while Makka still barked and trotted around them.

"What the hell are you doing in Russia?" Viktor asked, breaking the hug and grabbing Chris by the shoulders. "Thought you'd be exhibiting around Europe for the month?"

"Isn't it what I'm doing?" he laughed. "As far as I know Russia has some territory in Europe, too."

"But you should have told me! I could have fixed you a place to sleep, or something." Viktor suddenly glanced up, realizing there was no red sports car -so Chris-like that he the image wouldn't erase itself from his mind- parked next his black Mercedes "Wait, how did you get here?"

"Uh, I took a cab, why?"

"Because those cost a fortune, you hotheaded alpha." Viktor facepalmed. "You really should have called."

"And ruin the surprise? Who are you and what have you done to my friend?"

Viktor chuckled at Chris' fake dramatically surprised face. "Well, I am astonished indeed. It's been quite a long time since we last met."

"Is half a year too long when I'm not by your side?" Chris asked with a silly intonation once more. "I'm flattered."

"And I see you haven't changed a bit."

But he had indeed missed the drama Chris always brought to his life. His playful banter and uncommitted flirting was refreshing to hear after all what had been going on in his life, so the smile wouldn't leave Viktor's face.

He put his arm over Chris' shoulders and pushed him inside the house, closing the door behind them.

The Swiss had been one of the first clients Viktor ever defended on court, and the one person that brought him into the spotlight when he'd won his case.

Chris was an artist -he loved being called that, although he would be better off calling himself what he actually was; a master in photography-, and one of the very few alphas in the world that worked in that area. His case had been a total scandal; worse, even, than the omega's case, because Chris was something like a worldwide known celebrity and everyone wanted to have as much information from him as they could.

So, he had been taking pictures for an exhibition in Russia, and in some way or another found himself taking a picture of the murder of some guy in an alleyway. Some pedestrians saw him on the scene, and called the police on him. Chris, away from his home country, barely understanding any Russian and everyone else not understanding either English or French, was brought to the police station and was left lawyer-less and in a holding for almost a week, until Viktor stated he wanted to take his case.

Long story short, Viktor won the case against all odds, and they grew incredibly close in the process.

From the beginning, they'd been a great match; both easygoing, exuberant and almost shameless with everything they did or said. Their relationship was bound to develop even further than friendship.

Yes, two alphas dating each other had been a scandal in Russia. But no one from their close circle seemed bothered by it, so it wasn't that much of an issue for them. It was actually one of the best relationships Viktor had ever had. It wasn't bound by any responsibilities or over-the-top commitment, and they both had a lot of fun together.

It didn't work out, in the end. Chris was a free soul, and Viktor lived for his job. He wouldn't forgive himself if he kept Chris from doing what he loved just because he couldn't keep up with Chris' travels. They put an end to it, but remained friends. To this day, none of them regretted what had happened between them. In fact, they both enjoyed recalling those memories.

So, visits like these were unusual, but enormously appreciated.

"What have you been up to in here?" Chris asked, taking in the cleaning supplies stashed on top of the kitchen counter and the smell of disinfectant. "Have you seriously just tidied up?"

"Just for you," Viktor replied with a wink, making Chris smile. "You want a drink?"

Chris hesitated, then nodded. "Can I have a beer?"

It was Viktor's turn to look surprised. "Isn't it a bit too early for this? I don't think I'm up to Prague's hotel room round two." He said, sarcasm doting his words with a sultry rhythm, but complying to Chris' request anyways. "Or has life only given you ripe lemons these days?"

Chris nodded again, grimacing. "Something like that." He said, taking the bottle of beer from Viktor. He leaned over the counter and took a sip, humming at the taste. "Though I'm not here to talk about me. Not yet, at least. I kind of want to know what the great Viktor Nikiforov has been up to."

"Oh, you know, this and that. Lying around all day, eating junk, watching TV-" he trailed off.

Chris glared at Viktor. "You wouldn’t think that if you look at yourself," he smirked, and Viktor smiled. "How’s the job?"

Immediately the atmosphere changed.

Viktor sighed, looking at the floor, his face dark, frustration pooling in his stomach and on the air around him. He usually would have just sucked it up, portraying the strong, unbreakable alpha that he was believed to be. But with Chris, things were different. He could freely show how he felt, and knew his best friend would be there to support him no matter what.

So, when Chris walked around the kitchen counter and embraced Viktor in another unexpected hug, he felt the stiffness from his shoulders leave his body, knowing it'd be okay if he let himself show how stressed he actually was.

"Chris?" he asked softly,

Viktor felt the blond hair tickling the side of his face, and he smiled. He’d teased Chris so much for being smaller than him when they'd first met- He inhaled the scent of familiar alpha, one that had helped him ground himself so many time in the past. The blonde pulled back and looked at him, and Viktor's eyebrows raised again.

"Sorry, but I felt like you needed another hug. You look like absolute shit." Chris said unceremoniously while walking into the living room. He dropped into the sofa like he owned it and splayed his arms over the cushions. Then, he got all serious once more. "The TV on the airport, it was talking about a case,"

Oh shit. Viktor's smile dropped. "And?"

"Well, it said there was a body, and the people being interviewed were deeply concerned, to say the least. It said Lipedrov, and some guy was talking. A cop. Looked a lot like Otabek."

Viktor sat on the armchair across from the sofa and looked up, carefully, mind already working on a way to discuss this issue.

"Okay." He said softly, feigning ignorance.

Yet the blonde snapped.

“Don’t do that. Don’t bloody do that.”

“Do what?”

“Put on that face, that stupid pokery-lawyer-face. Don't talk like I’m some idiot client you can play little games with because I’m too intimidated to call you on it. You don’t intimidate me. We're both alphas.”

There was no point in arguing.

Viktor said calmly, “I’m not going to try to intimidate you.”

“Then stop going around the bush and tell me.”

“You know I can’t discuss work.” Viktor huffed out, “It’s not personal.”

“How the hell is this not personal? I’m your best friend. How much more personal does it get?” he was jammed tight into his corner of the sofa, feet braced like he was getting ready to come flying at Viktor, which was unlikely but not impossible, considering how spontaneous the man was.

“True enough. I meant I’m not hiding anything from you personally. I have to be discreet with everyone.”

Chris chewed at his lower lip and watched him like Viktor was his enemy, narrowed green eyes alight with cold animal cunning.

“Okay,” he said, resolutely. “So let’s just watch the news.”

Viktor had been hoping that wouldn’t occur to him.

“I thought you liked the peace and quiet, away from the media.”

“If it’s public enough that the whole country can see it, surely it can’t be too confidential for me to watch. Right? Considering that it’s not personal.”

“For God’s sake, Chris. I’ve been fawning over work all week. The last thing I want to do is come home and look at work on TV! Less if you're here for a visit.”

“Then tell him what the friggin’ fuck is going on! Or I’m going to turn on the news and you’ll have to hold me down to stop me. Do you want to do that?”

“All right,” Viktor said, hands going up. “Okay. I’ll give you the story, if you’ll calm down for me.”

“Okay, okay.” Chris smiled, “Chill, see?”

Viktor sighed once more, taking his head into his hands. “It was just one body. An elderly alpha who lived alone. Out in Lipedrov. An omega walked into his house and killed him.”

“How’d he kill him?”

“A gun. The man tried to defend himself with his gun, and tables turned.” Chris stared at nothing and didn’t move, didn’t even breathe, while he thought that over.

“Lipedrov,” he said finally, absentmindedly. “Are you positive?”

“About the place?”

“No! About the omega!” Viktor rubbed at the hinge of his jaw at the exclamation, trying to work some of the tension out of it. “You are not the type to take things for granted. Are you sure he killed the guy?”

“Yeah. I’m positive.” The focus had come back into Chris' eyes: they were on him, unblinking. “There’s a recording.”

“You’re positive just because you’ve seen it.” Viktor didn’t answer, so Chris just continued stubbornly. “But you’re working on it. If you were that positive, you wouldn’t have taken it. That’s what you said in my case; you knew I hadn’t killed that guy.”

“Looking at a murder case objectively is work. That’s what I’m supposed to do. And it is pretty explicit the way he killed the guy.”

“Blah blah blah whatever. This murder case is your work. Right?”

“Yes?” He was getting considerably more frustrated as the conversation progressed. “What do you plan on getting with this?”

“The reason why you’re so adamant to tell me why you believe your client is innocent.”

Chris straightened his back and took a sip of his beer, looking so full of himself that Viktor began to feel intimidated himself. He heard Makkachin trotting towards them, probably because of the smell of both their pheromones. When Viktor looked up, she actually bounced onto the couch next to Chris, demanding his attention. Chris patted her head, and she seemed content with just that.

Yet, Makkachin looked at her owner like she might be favoring the other alpha. Viktor could almost imagine her saying " _just tell him already_!".

He just gave up. “Yeah. I’m on this case because I think my client is innocent. Or justified, at the least.” Viktor said, as if it shamed him.

Chris hummed, a deep, long sound, like he’d known all along. Viktor was pretty sure the guy was just pushing to see where it would leave him, but it had worked. “So? Go on, spit it out.”

“Why should I even tell you?”

“Because you’ve been dying to tell everyone about it.” Chris said like it was the most obvious thing, “It shows on your face, Vitya. I know you.”

He sighed, infuriated with Chris' persistence and his own weakness to it.

"You're incorrigible." Viktor teased, rolling his eyes with no bitterness to his words. "But okay, you win. I'll tell you."

Saying it was easier than doing it, though, because, somehow, Viktor couldn't come up with a way to convey his thoughts into words. He was scared he wouldn't be able to get his point across.

Chris' legs were jittering from his place on the couch. Viktor stopped thinking and just stared, mesmerized by the sight. Then, he remembered. Perfect place, but not the perfect position, Chris had said once when they were both on that same couch, watching a movie.

Viktor smiled to himself, remembering how fussy the alpha in front of him was, worse even than any omega he'd ever met. He liked having his legs elevated; it was his epitome of comfort. And here his feet were on the ground, unable to experience that perfect comfort.

At the third crossing and uncrossing of legs, Viktor spoke up.

“You can put your feet up, you know?”

“I'm fine.” Chris said stubbornly. "Just getting ready for the gigs. It's making me a little nervous."

Viktor rolled his eyes, chuckling. His own nerves were gone.

Taking a deep breath, he began talking.

"So, let's start from the beginning. This kid, the omega, was being held in a cell back at the station. He was just…miserable. He was hunched up in there, in a corner, shivering and crying, and the smell around him was one of pure fear; from that point, I started believing this kid couldn't have done something as bad as killing someone. And when I went nearer I saw his eyes, and I kind of…lost every doubt. Even now, I keep trying to believe he had a valid reason to do that.

-And it's stupid, I know, because there's solid evidence that proves the kid had never been to that house before, and the sole fact that he entered a private property, even if the other guy ended up dead instead of him, makes it a second-degree murder. There's no way out of it with the information we have right now."

Chris had actually raised his legs and put them on top of the cushions while Viktor spoke. He looked comfortable, his head resting on his knees and a hand mindlessly petting Makkachin as he stared with utter concentration.

He hummed when Viktor stopped speaking. "So, what's your theory? What do you think happened that lead to this alpha's death?"

Viktor let his head hang backwards, looking up to the ceiling.

"It could be anything, Chris." He raised his shoulders and let them fall back down, completely lax, conveying his words with the action. "What comes into my mind first is that the kid was somewhat being threatened by this alpha. See, the guy invites the omega into his house for some shady business. Drugs, probably, considering they found remnants of them in the omega's body. The omega went to buy some more, but this old man sets a trap, tries to kill the kid, gets killed instead." Viktor bit his lip, considering. "Or the kid owed some money, or needed a place to crash for the night, and the same outcome as before. Or, hell, my wildest guess goes as far as thinking the kid could have been a prostitute for all that matters. He's just a nobody to the state."

"Has the police done rape screenings?" He heard Chris ask, but Viktor didn't look at him.

"They can't. It's not legal if he's not consenting."

"Why wouldn't he consent, though?"

This time, he raised his head. "Uh, because of his drop?"

"What?!" Chris exclaimed, putting his feet back down and leaning forward. "He was in a drop?"

"Has been for the past week" Viktor corrected, frowning at Chris' disbelief. "No one has been able to talk to him, that's what's getting in everyone's way."

Chris' mouth gaped, his own dark brows lifted almost comically high upon hearing this new information. "Then who is keeping an eye on him?"

"I managed to get a permit to keep him until he recovered. He was here until yesterday, then he got sick."

"Here as in, your _house_?" He asked, arms flailing and signaling around.

When Viktor nodded, he gawked. "Didn't you say you watched the news at the airport?"

And Chris crossed his arms, huffing. "I watched, but I didn't get as much as you've told me! My Russian's a tad rusty, and the woman from the news channel had that weird eastern accent." Chris said in annoyance. Then, he sighed deeply, closing his eyes and shaking his head as if he believed Viktor was crazy. "So, you're defending an omega in a drop. Well, it does seem a lot like you."

"Yeah. You couldn't have seen this in the news, but the omega suffered a drug withdrawal while he was with me. Yesterday morning, to be exact. I just cleaned it all, but I freaked out big time. I really thought he was going to die."

"That explains the cleaning. Then what are you going to do now?"

"Wait for the omega to wake up, take his statement, prove everyone he's innocent or just dig a deeper grave for my career."

"Is it really that bad?"

"Yeah..."

There was silence. Makkachin stirred and made small complaining snuffles; Chris reached out a hand, without looking, and jiggled the fur on her tummy till she laid back down. Neither he nor Viktor looked at the other.

In the end, Viktor said, "I can't think of anything to make things better at the moment."

Chris nodded in agreement.

They let the silence grow. Makka suddenly wriggled and set up a high-pitched whine. Viktor smiled and stood, laying back down on the other end of the sofa to caress his dog's head.

"You know, maybe I should-" Viktor was interrupted by the chime of his cellphone. "Hang on, let me get this real quick."

Chris waved his hand up and down, telling him to go on as he took another sip from his beer.

The number was an unknown one. "Nikiforov." Viktor said courtly, getting up and moving away from Chris.

"Mr. Nikiforov, this is officer Kiseov from the Saint Petersburg police department," the man at the other side of the phone said. Viktor frowned.

"Yes? What is it, officer?"

"It's about the omega in your care," the officer said, and Viktor flinched so hard at his words that he banged his hip on the kitchen counter. He hissed in pain, and noticed Chris watching him from the living room with a questioning look.

"Is the omega alright?" was the first thing he asked, panic creeping into his voice.

"He is, don't worry," too late, Viktor wanted to tell him. "I'm actually calling because the doctor needed to talk to you. It seems the omega woke up for a minutes-"

"He what?!" Viktor exclaimed, putting a hand over his mouth when he realized how loud he was being. "Sorry, officer. But I really need some more information to work with."

Or I'm going to have a heart attack, he left unsaid.

"It's okay, it's understandable." Officer Kiseov said, and Viktor could almost hear the amusement in his voice. "The doctor won't give me any more information, though. He said he needed you here, being his legal guardian and all."

"Okay, I'm leaving now. Thank you." Viktor hung up, not even bothering to hear the officer say goodbye.

Viktor only managed to walk out of the kitchen when he remembered Chris was still there. He looked at him from the hallway, still sitting in the sofa with the questioning look on his face.

"You need to go," Chris said, almost as a question.

"The hospital rang," Viktor said with no preamble. "They said the kid woke up."

"This early? Thought you'd said he had a drug withdrawal? It should take at least a week for him to fully wake up," Chris asked. Oh, right, Viktor thought. With the constant sassiness, he'd forgotten what a nerd Chris actually was.

"I really have no idea, Chris. I've never worked with this before. Maybe it's just a special case? Doesn't everyone have a different reaction to them?"

"Not really," Chris mumbled. "But hey, it's good news, right?"

"Yeah, but I really need to go. The doctor asked for me." Viktor exclaimed, trotting to his room to change his clothes in a hurry. "You eat anything you want from the freezer. You know where the books are, and my Netflix password is still the same." He shouted.

"I know! I've been using it for years now!" he heard Chris scream from the living room.

That made him chuckle.

When he finished dressing with a more presentable attire - a formal one, because he never knew when the lawyer was going to be needed-, he came running out of the room to see Chris already set up for a movie marathon with Makka at his side.

"I don't really know when I'll be back." Viktor said, apologetically.

Chris just brushed it off. "It's fine. I'll be in Russia for a while, we can catch up some other time. Now go! Your client needs you!"

Viktor didn't need to be told twice. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I live for Viktor and Chris' bromance.  
> Also, the sass is strong in this one.  
> Disclaimer: alpha/alpha relationships are treated like same gender relationships in this AU. The same goes for omega/omega while beta/beta is normal.


	10. Truth

For the second time in that week, the visit to the hospital took a great toll off Viktor's motivation. Word had already leaked about the omega's condition, and when the swarm of reporters saw Viktor parking his car on one of the visitors assigned spots, it only served for confirmation of the rumors. It didn't matter that the guys had been considerate enough to not enter the hospital, because they did as much harm outside as they could have done inside.

Being pushed around by the crowd while the mics were shoved in front of his mouth and hearing the countless shouts deafening on his ears wasn't exactly how Viktor had imagined the visit to be like. But he had somewhere to be and a job to do, so he armed himself up with patience and went through the crowd refraining from hurting any of the reporters. A not-so-faked scent of anger emitting from his body did the trick, and he was soon inside and safe from the people.

Sometimes, being an alpha had its perks.

Viktor walked straight to the reception desk, doing his best to get rid of the smell of nervousness and frustration by shaking his suit jacket.

He leaned over the reception desk, waiting for the nurse there to get off the phone. She wasn't facing him, so Viktor tapped his finger insistently to get her attention. When she finally noticed him, her eyes widened in surprise, and she hanged up the phone in a hurry.

A nervous, sweet smell reached Viktor's nose. He smiled at the nurse - an omega clearly infatuated by Viktor's presence- which just managed to startle her even more.

"G-good morning, sir. Here for a visit? " she stammered, all her undivided attention put into the alpha in front of her. She was young, Viktor noticed. Probably just out of nursing school, barely entering the age in which she was supposed to be courted by someone.

It wasn't his objective to give the nurse any idea, but the fact that he was treating her with care and patience when she'd just entered such a complicated age would boost her confidence, and omegas lived for the praise an alpha could give them. Also, the people coming to the hospital were masters of complaining with no apparent reason. Viktor didn't want to make her deal with more than was necessary.

"No," he said sweetly, charmingly. "I mean, kind of. I'm the lawyer of a patient here, an omega who was brought yesterday?"

"Would you happen to know the patient's name, sir?" she asked, fingers drumming nervously over the keyboard to her side.

Viktor shook his head. "I believe the doctor in charge was called…Carter?"

Her eyes gleamed.

"Ah! Yes! Mr. Nikiforov!" at his nod, she smiled and turned to the computer, typing something on it. "The omega was moved to an individual room during the night. He's still on 24/7 watch, but he hasn't presented any complications so far," she read from the screen. "Doctor Carter was waiting for you in his room, it's number 208."

"Thank you, have a nice day."

Viktor began to walk away, but he managed to see her blush from the corner of his eye. He chuckled to himself, already feeling refreshed from the omega's scent alone. He really hoped she'd get someone nice to look after her soon.

However, his mind already went back to work when he reached the door to the room his client was currently in.

But the last straw came when Viktor actually entered and saw the kid – his ankles in shackles, both hands cuffed to the bed, a tube connected to his pale, thin forearm and a breathing mask over his face. He looked so pale that Viktor feared he could disappear on the whiteness of the bedsheets.

A stern police officer was watching his every move.

Viktor marched in with no hesitation.

"Why is my client in restraints and under police guard?" He refrained, through long years of carefully honed practice, from adding an adolescent, _are you kidding me_?

"He’s still under investigation," the officer replied patiently, as though explaining to a child. "So, he's under arrest and will probably be going to jail as soon as he's gotten a medical release."

That made Viktor see red, taking note of the gruff alpha voice that answered him. Had not been for the scent blockers the room was notoriously sprayed with, he would have tried controlling himself a little. Yet the cockiness of this guy added to the sight of the omega only managed to infuriate him further.

"For god’s sake; he’s harmless here!” Viktor raged. “He is having withdrawal symptoms!"

"He's having what a lawyer and the emergency responders -who are not doctors- thought was drug withdrawal."

Viktor folded his arms and took a step closer. "Are you saying he induced vomiting and faked his condition?"

The officer folded his own arms and met his angry glare with perfect outward calm, yet self-pleased smirk. "He was proved guilty by all that evidence in court just yesterday. Now he's got a supposed medical condition that prevents him from being on court, and you wonder why I'm not buying it?"

The doctor appeared then, walking through the door holding a folder in his hands. He looked at both men, first Viktor as a greeting, and then the officer with a stern gaze. "The training emergency responders get is the same as nurses and us doctors do, and seizures aren't as easy to fake as you might think," he shot back, to which the officer huffed indignantly. "The omega wasn't pretending."

“Wait, seizure?” Viktor asked, alarmed.

The doctor nodded at him. “You described him having a coughing fit, which was just a small part of it. It was a seizure instead, though.”

Viktor had no time to be surprised when the officer spoke once more.

"All right," agreed the officer suddenly and suspiciously amiably. "Fair enough. I'm not a doctor; you are. If you say seizures are hard to fake convincingly, then I accept your professional opinion. But here's my professional opinion, Mr. Nikiforov; this omega was desperate not to be in court anytime soon, and in my experience, desperate men do desperate things.” He pointed towards the omega in bed. “And, he’s a junkie. I'm sure he's familiar with substances that can cause seizures. If he deliberately caused himself harm to avoid testifying, that's an obstruction of justice . . . and that's an offense he will be jailed for _if_ he is not declared guilty for the murder he committed."

It took Viktor a moment to make his voice steady. "Provided, of course, that your theory is correct. If you're wrong, then there is an omega with a serious medical condition that must be treated, and he cannot be punished nor denied from that."

The officer acknowledged this with a slight incline of his head and another faint smirk. "Of course, I should have known; legendary lawyer Nikiforov is a fitting tittle. I'll let you get right to work finding your . . . diagnosis.” Still smiling, he turned away, and started walked out of the room. “I’ll be just outside, though. Oh, and Dr. Carter?" He had turned back. Now the smile was gone but in its place was a dangerous sort of seriousness. "I'll be keeping track of his medical records for all the treatment he receives here, from today going onwards. If I suspect you're holding the omega longer than medically necessary or withholding pertinent information, I'll have to have you arrested for obstruction of justice too."

Viktor growled, noting the tense posture the doctor had, and just then he was conscious enough to notice their discussion had left him visibly shaken. Viktor hadn’t even noticed the doctor being a beta, of course he’d be nervous around two infuriated alphas!

“I believe you’ve made your point clear, officer,” he stated, willing himself to put an end to this pointless brawl.

The officer smirked one last time and closed the door behind him, leaving Viktor alone with the doctor. Well, and with the omega, if being unconscious counted.

Dr. Carter seemed extremely grateful that the other alpha had left, and he allowed himself to take a shaky deep breath to calm himself.

“Sorry for that,” Viktor apologized to him, taking two steps back to give the doctor a little more space. He thanked the fact that the strong smell of the scent blockers managed to hide the pheromones he was sure his body was expelling, or else it could have harmed both the doctor and the omega in bed. At least their discussion didn’t seem to bother the bed-ridden kid.

The doctor looked at him. “It’s alright. He just caught me unprepared.”

A few more seconds were enough for the doctor to regain his composure.

"Please, have a seat, Mr. Nikiforov." Dr. Carter said, motioning a chair at one side of the bed. "We have a lot to talk about."

Viktor was glad for the seat. On one side, he was already depleting his energy levels and, on the other, he got a perfect view of the omega from there. Even better, he could actually lean over the bed and examine the boy as much as he needed to, and it also served to ease his nerves.

Barely conscious of it, he reached for the omega's hand slowly, grasping it for reassurance. A barely-there tightening of the omega's hand went unnoticed by Viktor.

“Top notch law enforcement, huh?” Viktor said then, sarcastically, once the doctor sat on a chair of his own. “One would expect they’d be more charming than they actually are.”

The beta smiled. “They deal with a whole load of shit every day,” he said, shrugging. “Become cold-hearted and rude. It’s not their fault.”

“It not anyone else’s fault that he’s here, either.” Viktor said, looking towards the omega’s bed. “Yet he seemed so hellbent on telling us otherwise that I couldn’t stand it anymore. Faking the symptoms? What a brute. He really couldn’t come up with anything else?”

"Except," the doctor broke in, "that once again, we still can’t seem to find the exact cause to the withdrawal either. What I am sure of, is that something is seriously wrong with the omega. Single episode seizure and vomiting while ongoing omega drop, caused, seemingly, by a withdrawal from a type of benzo. We haven’t been able to narrow it down to any certain possibility other than that.”

"What about epilepsy?" Viktor offered immediately.

"We can’t be sure of that. He has no medical history to work with,” blocked Dr. Carter, taking a look at the folder in his hand. "Head trauma causes concussion, concussion leads to nausea, vomiting, and seizures. Yet, trauma would've shown up on the cranial x-rays or CT. White blood cell count is normal, except for some neutropenia, and his temperature’s too low," he mused, looking up from the file. "Which rules out febrile or drop-caused seizures."

The manila folder snapped to the frame of the bed. Two sets of eyes watched it for a second before turning into two identical expressions of incredulousness.

"Over a quarter of seizures have no discernible cause," Viktor protested.

"Which means three quarters of seizures have discernible causes," retorted Carter. "Suppose we start there before we throw up our hands in defeat. However, we have some good news for the matter.”

Viktor straightened up at that.

“Oh yeah! The officer that called me, he said the kid had woken up?”

"Well, waking up is not actually the term I'd use. More like, _less out of it_." he answered. Viktor slumped back on his seat in frustration. "It's still too early for him to actually regain consciousness, actually. But he reacted to the officer you just met. The first time he entered the room, the omega's heartrate went haywire. He was seconds away from another seizure."

"Is that why the room stinks of scent blockers?" Viktor asked, scrunching his nose in distaste to prove his point.

Dr. Carter nodded. "It was a pretty strong reaction. Although subconsciously sensed, it is a great sign of recovery."

No one said anything. They were both left pondering with the steady beeping of the heart monitor as an anchor. All of Viktor's thought gradually gravitated towards the condition the poor omega was in, and he found himself worrying about what he could have done to prevent this situation more often than not.

The contrast between the omega's ebony black hair and ghostly white skin made Viktor's heart itch with anxiousness and helplessness. How he wished he could see those beautiful brown eyes once more. He missed them desperately. Viktor needed to see them to know everything was going to turn out right in the end.

"Then everything that's left is to hear what the omega has to say, once again," Viktor mumbled, breaking the silence.

"I'm afraid so, yes," the doctor said, sadly. "Situations like these are tricky. Had he been taken to the hospital at the beginning, maybe we could have been able to discern what specific type of benzodiazepine caused the withdrawal. At this point, there was barely anything left in his bloodstream to identify it..."

Viktor scowled, rolling his eyes.

"Had he been taken to the hospital before, maybe he could've recovered from the drop with no complications nor suffering from his part."

Dr. Carter sighed deeply, looking at the omega with gloomy eyes and a pitying smile. "You know, I've been an avid follower of the case from the beginning." he murmured, gaze fixed to the kid. "The media is very frigging stupid, ain't it?"

Viktor chuckled coldly at the change of tone. "Understatement of the year."

"It's just…All that negativity, making this kid seem guilty when he's pretty damn hurt to start with. And the people who believe all that shit." Dr. Carter shook his head, scoffing. "They just haven't seen _this_ shit yet."

"It's not that they haven't," Viktor interjected. "They were coerced to not believe it."

Another long, exasperated sigh was heard.

"Well, I really need to be going now," the doctor said, standing up. "There's a whole list of patients that need my attention too."

"Do I need to leave? Because I'd really prefer to stay here with him," but the doctor smiled at him understandingly.

"I hoped you would, he seems to be at ease around you, Mr. Nikiforov," he pointed towards their linked hands, chuckling when Viktor's eyes widened in surprise. "You're welcome to stay for as long as you need to. There's a button next to the bed if you need anything."

The soft click of the door closing was the last thing he heard before he was left alone once more, with only his thoughts and the beeping of machines accompanying him.

As much as he wanted to get serious and have some work done while he looked over the kid, seeing the omega hooked up to all the machines and being completely helpless was too much to take in. Viktor could see the kid’s worn face behind the mask. He looked so much younger laying there, like years of his life had just been stolen from him.

_What if he hadn't come to the hospital at the right time?_

_What if the omega didn't wake up?_

_What if the kid managed to get better only to be proved guilty in court and sent to jail?_

He suddenly felt overwhelmed by his own thoughts.

“I’m sorry, Honey,” he whispered. The omega didn’t respond when Viktor's hand hovered over his head, so he started lightly brushing back his soft, black hair. He gave the kid a sad smile. “I’m sorry for being such a mess. I know I make a pretty crappy lawyer right now but I promise you, I’ll do better. I promise, Honey.”

For something like hour, the omega didn't move. He didn't seem to be waking up anytime soon. His heart rate still showed steady on the monitors, yet wasn’t moving at all, save for the rising and falling of his chest.

Against his will and better judgment, Viktor felt himself drift to sleep.

 

* * *

 

The alpha woke up to the feeling of something trembling under him.

Viktor was confused at first, not even remembering when or where he fell asleep. He forced himself to think it was just Makkachin having a bad dream from the feet of his bed, but then he realized he wasn't in a comfortable position and, _what was that smell_?

That's when he remembered he wasn't at home. He was at the hospital. And someone smelled terrified.

Viktor rose with a start, all sleepiness lost with every sense of his body screamed to _protect, protect, protect_ and make sure whoever was so afraid was alright. The room was brightly lit; Viktor had to furiously scrub his eyes because of it. When he finally regained his sight, he gasped in surprise.

The omega was awake.

His eyes were clouded and hazy, unfocused as his eyelids trembled with the amount of light reaching them. The kid looked around the room in a frenzy, yet he wasn't able to see anything. Machines beeped insistently with a desperate beat and Viktor wondered how he hadn't noticed that before.

A knot on his throat was preventing Viktor from making any noise. However, anxiety was already seeping from his body. It took only a sniff from the blinded omega; it was in that moment that he began screaming.

A shrill, nerve-wracking sound filled Viktor's head. The scream tore through him like glass. He felt his eyes widen and pulse quicken, heart thudding like a hammer. The omega ran out of breath, and then the scream came again, desperate, afraid, followed by a scent that made Viktor want to throw up from sadness alone; his instincts as an alpha were begging him to _do something_!

The omega tried to lift himself from the bed, but realized he was being held in place by the shackles and cuffs. That only managed to scare him even further. His chest heaved for breath once more, and his honey-brown eyes were wide and astonished.

It was then when the door was flung open with a resounding _thud_ , and Dr. Carter and two other nurses barged into the room, surrounding the bed within seconds.

Viktor stood petrified on his seat, not reacting to the doctor's " _you need to leave_ " even if he had wanted to. He could somehow feel his emotions mimicking the omega's, and his gaze stayed frozen in place. He saw a needle somewhere, but he only acknowledged it when it went straight inside the omega's field of view, and he flinched back aggressively. With renewed forces, he screamed again, now mumbling some gibberish along the way.

Yet the nurse holding the instrument didn't back away. When the omega realized a body was looming over him, he shrank into himself, getting all his limbs as close as he could to his body for protection.

“N-no! Ple…a…se!"

The blood drained from Viktor's face at the helpless stance and recognition of those words -so distinctly English that his trained ears caught them even when the nurses ignored it.  Before he was even aware of making a conscious decision, his hands found their way to the omega's shoulders, shielding him from the needle.

“Sir! You have to let us sedate him!" Viktor heard the nurse say. A determined look in her direction shut her up, her actions frozen too.

The omega trembled under his touch, eyes screwed shut. Tears had begun falling at one point, and his limbs were still struggling against the restraints. And Viktor was at a loss, he didn't know what to do.

"Wait! We can't sedate him with this!" he heard Dr. Carter say, appearing on his field of view from the other side of the bed. He looked at Viktor with a serious expression. "Mr. Nikiforov, help me remove the cuffs."

Viktor frowned, confused at the order. Yet the alarmed beeping of the machines and the pungent smell of panic forced him to comply before more harm could be done.

The restraints were unfastened, and in an instant the omega curled into himself, covering his head with both hands and hiding it close to his knees. Silent tears fell off his face as he fought his labored breath. The oxygen mask fell on the mattress next to the kid, useless. Viktor could see the terror and pain in his face, and felt it reach out and wrap itself around his heart.

One look in Dr. Carter's direction in search of guidance and he paled. He was alone on this one. Okay, alright, Viktor thought to himself in reassurance. He could do this.

"Please, honey, it's alright." he said softly in English. The omega flinched once more, and Viktor took it as a sign of acknowledgement.

He inched his hand forward to caress he omega's face to try and get him out of the cocoon he had made. When the kid whimpered in terror, Viktor backed his hand away with a jerk.

“I’m not going to hurt you. Please let me help you, Honey. Just let me help you," Viktor whispered urgently, carefully moving his hand forward again.

This time the omega opened his eyes. Honey-brown met icy-blue, and the smallest tinges of recognition shone through the haze. Viktor slipped his hand under the kid’s head, testing the waters. The omega's gaze was still glued to Viktor, even though he was pretty sure the kid wasn't able to see him.

Tenderly, Viktor then moved slowly to his cheek to wipe away the tears. The kid trembled and shivered, and the alpha could feel him petrifying under his touch. His breathing continued to hitch every now and then, desperate little gasps wrecking his whole body. And the smell was still as awful as ever; the acid, all-encompassing stench of fear making Viktor's nose itch.

Dr. Carter approached the alpha slowly with his hands raised. He was holding flask filled with a clear liquid. "This shouldn't intervene with the other drugs in his system." he murmured, only high enough for Viktor to hear,

He nodded at the doctor, tuned him out, and went back to try and comfort the omega.

“Honey, look at me, please?” the omega gasped, eyes opening wide for a second and then hid behind closed eyelids. Viktor watched in concern and awe at his manners. “Do you know who I am?” he asked, trying to sound as gentle as possible.

Then, the omega spoke.

“H-he…” he started, voice raspy and worn, dry from screaming. It made Viktor's stomach do an uncomfortable flip. “H-he's…I- ”

“Whatever you are thinking, I’m not that person” Viktor interjected, not sure if it was going to help someway. “I need you to tell me if you remember me, please”

His head shook, eyelids fluttering, trying his best not to open his eyes. Then, all of a sudden, their eyes met again, and the omega’s mouth gaped. New tears formed in his eyes and Viktor had to retain himself from shedding some too. He could smell the relief around the omega as his limbs lost grip.

He looked at the alpha intently, catching his bearings, checking if his eyes weren’t lying.

"Y-you..." the omega began once more. The alpha strained his ears to hear better. "You, u-under...stand?"

The question almost made Viktor's heart finally shatter to a million pieces. He had long ago realized the kid could speak English, yet he never could have guessed he didn't understand Russian. It seemed improbable, almost incredible to believe he hadn't understood anything the alpha had said.

"I do, Honey. I understand you." he said, smiling warmly.

Viktor offered the hand that was caressing the omega's face for reassurance, which was taken almost immediately with rash force. The machine's beeping spiked for a second. He hadn't been expecting that reaction either.

"Honey-" Viktor stopped himself. He figured it was finally time to stop using that name. "What's your name, sweetie?" he asked softly, a murmur as gentle as he could muster. "What should I call you?"

The silence that followed was deafening, and Viktor could feel it pressing in on his head, making his ears ring. Maybe the question had been too much, or too soon, but he desperately needed that answer.

Finally, after too many agonizing beeps from the heart monitor, the omega spoke.

"Y-yuuri. K-katsuki…Yuuri."

And everything suddenly changed, but didn't at the same time. For once, Viktor had something to call the omega by.

Yuuri. He loved the sound of it. Maybe it was because of his brother’s name, but the unique pronunciation with which the omega said it made it completely different from the Yuri he was used to.

However, the smell of fear reached his nose even stronger than before, and his minute of happiness was cut short.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…” Yuuri began mumbling over and over again, too rushed for Viktor's liking. “I’m sorry, I-I… I didn’t mean to…”

“Hey shh, it’s ok. I promise I’m not going to hurt you…” Viktor said, squeezing both of Yuuri's hands with his own. He shuddered at the motion, and then suddenly, his rambling stopped.

Yuuri looked at Viktor straight into his eyes. His mouth gaped; once, twice, but no noise was heard. His eyelids fluttered slightly, and the alpha realized that whatever sedation he was given was starting to take effect.

But Yuuri still had something to say.

"Y-you… I n-need-" It came out strained, slurred, consciousness already fading because of the medication. "He's k-keeping…me-"

The hold on Viktor's hand tightened minutely, and with a last, resolute display of strength, he tried speaking again.

"Keeping m-me…locked! Y-you have…to help m-me." he whispered.  "I need…t-to get out."

And his eyes closed at last.

It took exactly four seconds for Viktor to merge the phrases together and grasp the meaning of them. His face fell, and a headache began to form with the new thoughts plaguing his mind. Yet it all revolved about one thing, and one thing only:

The kid was being held against his will in Denisovich's house.

The fact that everything regarding the case seemed to fall perfectly into place now, didn't make Viktor feel accomplished.

If anything, he was terrified.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is done.
> 
> It wasn't initially intended for Yuuri to have been held hostage by the old man, (It actually was something like "he was invited to Denisovich's house and the guy set a trap for him" which I'd hinted for the entirety of the fic, upsss.)  
> However, when you guys started suggesting the possibility, it actually made a lot of sense, plot-wise speaking.  
> And hell, had it not been for you, I would've run out of ideas by chapter seven.
> 
> But no, the ride's not over yet.  
> In fact, I dare say, this is just the beginning.
> 
> Stay tuned!


	11. Safety

Dr. Carter quickly relayed his position to other doctors, given he was just a general practitioner and didn’t have the enough experience to work on this. However, he gladly signed the non-disclosure papers Viktor had given him, over what he’d seen and heard, and promised to testify on court that he -along with the team of nurses in the room at that time- had heard what the omega said.

But while he waited for a professional to arrive, Viktor refused to leave Yuuri alone. He even had to shove his guardianship permit in the face of a nurse just to get him to stop pushing Viktor out of the room. It was because of him that the omega wasn’t freaking out, and at this point, he really didn’t care about interfering with the nurse’s job. His instincts were acting for him, and they just wanted to protect the omega from everything that could potentially hurt him.

To Viktor and Yuuri, the wait was excruciatingly long. Viktor winced every time a nurse came and touched the omega, as Yuuri whimpered and cowered in fear each time.

"It's alright," Viktor coed gently every time. "No one's gonna hurt you anymore, okay?" Yuuri just looked at him, no other words were muttered. Viktor saw in his eyes that he didn't believe him.

The omega was looking around, wide eyed, scared, barely recovered from whatever sedative Dr. Carter had given him, when a knock to the room startled them both.

"Are you Mr. Nikiforov?"

A black woman stood by the door. She was in her early thirties, tall and had a stern yet worried look on her face. An alpha, Viktor smelled. He refrained from growling possessively in order to not scare the omega any more. But her sole presence seemed to overwhelm him, even more when Viktor stood from his side in order to greet her.

"Yeah." Viktor said, walking toward her. She extended her hand.

"I'm Dr. Keinn," She said. "Dr. Carter said you requested me?"

"I asked for someone that had handled a situation like this before." He said. Dr. Keinn glanced at Yuuri, sympathy and pain in her eyes.

"I've never had a patient this extreme before," She revealed. "I’m specialized in trauma recovery, and I've dealt mainly with abuse victims, but if this is anything like what Carter told us…”

Viktor lowered his voice once he noticed the intent gaze coming from the bed.

"I have no idea of what’s going on with him, but it’s been bothering me greatly how psychologically unstable he’s been since I met him, and all these other people-"

"Aren't exactly sympathetic," She finished for him. Viktor nodded and looked up at her. "I'll do the best I can not to scare him."

"Thank you. Oh! And, he doesn’t seem to understand Russian…" Viktor said truthfully.

"It’s alright. My parents are both from the States, it’s no problem.” She said with a smile in perfect English. Viktor was actually impressed, he hadn’t expected that. Dr. Keinn was looking at some papers on her clipboard, her lips pursed. “Drug withdrawal?" She winced, looking at him. "And omega drop for about a week?"

"He wasn’t allowed medical care before all this happened.” Viktor said. Dr. Keinn glanced at Yuuri again.

"He's seems so young." She said. "Goodness. Alright, I'll look him over."

"Please," Viktor said, desperation in his voice. "Just try not to hurt him."

"I swear I won't." She promised before sitting next to Yuuri.

The young man jumped when she came into view.

"Shh, it's okay, sweetie," she assured, smiling gently. "My name's Gloria."

"Pl-please, do-don't hurt m-me." His voice was small and shaking. Those were the first words he had managed since the big revelation, just before falling back asleep.

Dr. Keinn frowned, and Viktor smelled her poor attempt to try and calm him, but the omega flinched at her calming pheromones. She stopped doing that.

"I'm not gonna hurt you, sweetie," She said instead. "I have to look you over and make sure you're okay, alright?"

Yuuri looked at Viktor, making his heart throb. He looked so damn scared. The alpha itched to be able to do something else for the omega to try and ease his pain.

"It's alright, Yuuri," he assured, gently. "She won't hurt you,"

"And he'll be right here, okay?" she said gently and at a rhythm that was easy to follow. Yuuri slowly nodded, glancing nervously from Viktor to Dr. Keinn. "Okay, I need to check your body. Just your chest and arms, hun, I promise. This might sting a little.”

The omega whimpered at the words and looked back at Viktor, silently pleading. It was clear he wasn't comfortable on being touched, but he seemed terribly subdued by it. He didn't like it one bit, but he had no energy to fight it.

"It's okay, honey," Viktor assured, "I'm here, it's alright."

The omega reached out to him instead, tears forming again in his eyes. Viktor took in a shaky breath to calm himself down, using the effort to emit some calming pheromones of his own.

At that moment, he realized the omega was relying almost completely on Viktor to ground him and protect him. Maybe it was because he had stayed at Viktor's house, in his bed, surrounded by his alpha scent and got to make a connection between the alpha and safety; at least, that was what the hoped. But it was already a lot of responsibility to take care of a mateless omega in a drop, but being the only person Yuuri trusted, even if it was unconsciously? It was almost too much for Viktor to work with.

Regardless of his own fears, Viktor took the omega’s hand. Right now, anything to help him feel better.

There was a very long five minutes in which Yuuri winced, yelped and whimpered. Viktor soothed him as best as he could, and Gloria said she was sorry each time she pushed his body too hard. Viktor understood that she was doing her job, she had to press on places that hurt even if she did do it lightly. She had to make sure he was okay.

Truth be told, Gloria would rather not touch him at all. She could tell just by looking at him that he had been through true horrors that she couldn't even imagine.

She could tell just by feeling his arms and his ribs that they'd been broken before. But they had been set extremely well. Whoever hurt him also made sure that he wouldn't have any deformities from broken bones. She told her observations to Viktor, whose mind was already compiling the facts and linking them to the evidence he’d had on the case.

Every little piece managed to fit perfectly, and now more than ever he wished someone had done a medical checkup on the omega before locking him in a cold, dark cell. These facts wouldn’t have gone unnoticed by a trained professional, and it would have helped to the case to know that Yuuri had indeed gone through some shit by the time the crime happened. Maybe things would have gone differently, then.

"Alright, alright, hun," He heard Dr. Keinn say, gently touching the omega’s shoulder. "Just a little longer, okay? Now you aren't gonna like this part one bit. But just remember, I'm not hurting you, sweetie, okay?" Yuuri nodded, fearful, aware of what the doctor was doing and turned his head back toward Viktor.

Dr. Keinn tapped the omega’s right shoulder, still not applying any force. But from the looks of it, Viktor knew something was wrong with Yuuri’s arm. The desperate look coming from the fearful kid only served to confirm it.

"It's alright," Viktor said. “I’ll be over soon.”

Then, Dr. Keinn maneuvered her hands over the omega’s shoulder and twisted, hard. Viktor shuddered at the noise it made, and painfully watched Yuuri's face twist in the discomfort and fear that he was trying to control. He squeezed Viktor's hand tighter and tears slipped out from under his closed lids. He whimpered quietly.

"It's okay, kid, it's okay." Viktor assured. Yuuri swallowed and nodded but did not open his eyes.

"I'm sorry, sweetie, I'm sorry. Almost done, sugar, I promise." Gloria said softly. Yuuri nodded again, not having anything else to retort to. His lower lip trembled with unreleased sobs.

It was an excruciating three minutes.

"Okay, okay, I'm done. No more, sweetheart, no more." Gloria said, brushing Yuuri’s sweaty hair back. He flinched away from her hand out of reflex. Yuuri looked at her, and then the floor, uneasy, worried, deathly afraid, probably from reacting that way.

“It’s okay, Yuuri. You’re fine, it’s over.”

"His shoulder was dislocated, I had to re-set it.” Dr. Keinn told Viktor, and he shuddered once more at the implications of it. “Alright, you just wait here a minute. We've gotta take some blood again to check the stage of his withdrawal. I don't think I'll need to run any x-rays. Doesn't look like there's anything broken," Dr. Keinn said. She leaned close to Viktor and whispered, "I'll go talk to the rest of the team for about half an hour, alright? Are you gonna stay here with him?" He nodded.

She smiled at Yuuri and left the room.

Yuuri sat on the hospital bed, the covers pushed to the side. His hands were folded in his lap, body drawn close, head bowed. The remnants of a submissive position managed to flip Viktor’s stomach; it was as if he feared someone would come through the door to attack him, and he was confused whether to protect himself or act all obedient and compliant.

When a nurse came in to take some blood samples, he was frightened at first, eyes darting to the door the moment it opened. Viktor feared he might react badly to the sight of needles again. But, surprisingly, he didn't even flinch when it was inserted, and the nurse left shortly after.

"It's gonna be okay, honey." Viktor said, carefully putting a hand on his shoulder. Yuuri flinched but didn't pull away. "You still scared of me?” He asked.

"Yes.” Yuuri mumbled, softly, voice deep and wavering with disuse.

“Do you not know who I am?”

“No,” the kid admitted, and his body tensed at the same time the smell of fear rose.

Viktor was quick to brush the question off, realizing it had startled the omega greatly. With fast yet precise movements, he grabbed Yuuri's hand again before he could even flinch away. He startled, but didn't remove his hand. Viktor gave it a soft squeeze.

"It's gonna be alright, kid. We'll figure this out, okay?" He said. Yuuri nodded, still not looking at him. His gaze was stuck on some point between his eyes and the door, breath coming out in a fast, short sequence.

That's when something horrible occurred to Viktor. “Yuuri, do you know where we are?”

Viktor watched the omega freeze, and he winced at the strong reaction he caused. He watched as the rise and fall of his chest increased rapidly. Yuuri suddenly yelped and hid his face between his legs, shaking almost violently. He jerked his hand away from Viktor's, using it to cover his mouth. He whimpered in almost a rhythm, eyes still stuck on the door.

"Honey? Hey, what's wrong?" A mumbled mess was everything Viktor could hear coming from behind the omega's hands. "Yuuri?"

His breathing was becoming erratic, and the alpha was frantic to help. But Yuuri wouldn't let him close enough for that.

Yuuri suddenly gasped, and his eyes found their way to Viktor's. He whined as new tears fell from his eyes. 

"He's c-coming-" he managed to say in between huffs of air.

"What? Yuuri, who?" Viktor asked, bewildered. Then he remembered.

Denisovich. Yuuri thought the man was coming to get him. Viktor sat petrified on the side of the bed. Did Yuuri not remember anything at all? Not even the murder?

But he was too slow to come up with anything before the omega spoke again.

"Y-you can't let h-him... Please!" he rasped, utterly alarmed, gaze going back and forth between Viktor and the door.

He was curled into a ball on top of the mattress, shivering, and Viktor was pretty sure every attempt to calm him down was met with just more fear. Even his pheromones weren't working anymore.

"Please, please…I-I can't-" Another gasp. He was hyperventilating again.

Viktor tried to gently put his hand on Yuuri's healthy shoulder, but the omega yelped and jumped back, hitting his head on the wall behind him. It was like he'd just become aware of the other's presence in the room, like he hadn't expected Viktor being really there.

Viktor suddenly had an idea of what was going on inside the omega's head.

He subtly remembered one of the possible side-effects of a bad omega drop, which was, in effect, a partial or non-existent recollection of events previous to the drop. To Yuuri, considering the fact that he must have undergone a long period of suffering, and was probably traumatized by it, this all must seem like a dream. Adding the lingering effects of the sedative, and reality could be distorted to an unimaginable degree on the omega's perspective.

The problem with that being the case of his outburst, was that Viktor couldn't think of any way to show him he was really in a hospital; being taken care of and safe from the man of his nightmares.

But Viktor wasn't discouraged by that. Instead, he decided to push into Yuuri's comfort zone a bit further.

"Yuuri. Hey, it's okay. I'm here with you, I'll protect you." he soothed, releasing as much calming scent to the room as he could. But Yuuri gasped once more and bowed his head between his knees, sobbing.

He had his arms wrapped around his legs, trying to hide from whatever was plaguing his mind. He was reluctant to open his eyes and see that everything was okay. Viktor grimaced at the sight of his disheveled client, pain tearing at his heart, but he couldn't blame him for that.

He gingerly put a hand on his shoulder, feeling another flinch under it, but Yuuri didn't pull away.

"Just let me show you, honey." Viktor whispered. "Let me in and you'll see."

The omega's grip wavered, and Viktor took it as encouragement to try. Yuuri desperately wanted him to prove himself right.

Slowly, very slowly, Viktor pulled the young man into a hug. Yuuri tensed and panicked at first, but only for a moment. He let his head rest against the alpha's chest, arms folded to his own, still trying to protect himself. Viktor could feel his tears dampening his shirt, and the trembling kept going for a while.

Then, out of nowhere, Yuuri let go of himself, and his arms surrounded Viktor's chest with a jerk. He clawed frantically at the alpha's back, gripping his shirt with so much force that Viktor feared he might tear it.

But then, Yuuri started sobbing, so hard his whole body trembled. Every heave of breath was met with a wet, panicky intake of air. Like he didn't trust his touch, he had resorted to scent the alpha in front of him.

It smelled real, and he bawled harder at that.

Viktor hugged tighter, reassuringly, gently rocking the omega back and forth out of reflex. "Shh…It's okay, Yuuri. He can't hurt you anymore."

Yuuri just cried, trembling, and Viktor held him, marveling at how small he felt in his arms, how fragile and breakable; how someone could have such a cold heart to hurt something so pure and beautiful. He hugged him close, trying to soothe him as best as he could as his mind accepted the fact that he was safe. Now conscious, Viktor knew Yuuri wouldn't want to be alone anymore, especially if he still hadn't come to terms with his freedom.

He needed to know there was at least one man who didn't want to hurt him.

Yuuri stopped crying after a while, exhausted. He raised his head warily, survival instinct and fear still fueling every action. But his beautiful, honey-brown eyes showed a kind of innocent and broken hope that melted Viktor's heart when he saw them. The alpha smiled gently.

"You're safe, Yuuri. We're in the hospital."

The omega sobbed, but nodded, closing his eyes for a second before tightening his hold on Viktor's shirt.

"P-please don't leave" he rasped, barely a whisper. "Pl-please d-don't..."

"I'm not going anywhere, honey. I'm not leaving you alone."

Then his eyes rolled to the back of his head, and Yuuri was out again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Viktor's hair is falling down from stress.
> 
> Sorry for not making the chapter longer, but I really needed to get this part out or I'd be on edge the whole night.  
> I'm planning on writing the next chapter after I've sorted out some details for the plot. It'll be a sort of summary-ish, recopilatory chapter to show Viktor's train of thought and new theories, along with the obstacles that will arise.  
> Hopefully, it'll be uploaded sometime along the weekend.
> 
> Keep in tune, and thank you for reading!


	12. Hope

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I took a little longer to update, but managed to hit 4k with this one to put up with the last one :D  
> Sorry I'm late, but I'm sure you'll enjoy this chapter!

Yakov burst through the door of the office unceremoniously, and Viktor and Dr. Keinn jumped in their seats at the loud bang.

"What the hell have you done, brat?" he growled, and Viktor sighed.

Leave it to Yakov to blame everything on him. Just what he needed right now.

Viktor had called Yakov to the office number. It was like a test; he wanted Yakov to be minding his own business when he received the call, or else he'd explode before he could get some reason into him. It backfired, though, because Yakov had supposedly tried contacting Viktor multiple times since the day before. The problem was, Viktor hadn’t felt like answering, so it just made matters worse.

Yet, at the look Dr. Keinn shoot his way, he passed a hand through the remains of his hair and leaned against the wall. He was in a position which would have been considered rude, had it not been for the evident tinge of challenge in the room.

Three alphas in a particularly small office; that was an accident prone to happen. The windows were open and half a can of scent blocker was emptied into the room for that same reason.

Yakov went straight to the chase. “Is the omega still awake?”

The doctor gave Yakov a careful going-over, which seemed to be a good sign of acknowledgement.

“No, he fell back asleep a while ago.” Dr. Keinn said. “I doubt you’ll get much more out of him, though. He’s back with powerful painkillers, and it appears the drop is already retaliating, leaving the omega exhausted by itself.” She scowled. “Yet with the amount if stress, is probable that he’ll be waking up from time to time.”

“He’s out of danger, right?” Viktor perched in.

Dr. Keinn shrugged a little, leaning back on her chair. “No guarantees yet. His prognosis is brighter than it was yesterday, and the team is cautiously optimistic about his neurological functions, as well as the recovery from the drug withdrawal, but there’s still a risk of the symptoms just waiting until his body is strong once more. We’ll have a better idea in a couple of days.”

Yakov crossed his arms over his chest, looking at Viktor as if urging him to say something.

He rolled his eyes, but complied anyways. “He spoke.”

“He spoke?” Yakov repeated, frowning. “What do you mean he spoke?”

Viktor groaned.

“His name is Yuuri. Yuuri Katsuki. There’s no match on the internet to his name, as I would have hoped.”

“Okay? That’s what you called me here for?”

“No.” Viktor shook his head. “We got a statement out of him.” Yakov’s ears perched up at the information, and he raised one eyebrow in a silent way to tell Viktor to continue. “He said he’s been held captive by Denisovich.”

“Captive.” Yakov repeated once more, pronouncing every syllable slowly. Viktor nodded his way, waiting for his boss to give the idea a chance. “What medical evidence supports his statement?”

Dr. Keinn responded at that time. “With the physical examination I did, I was able to determine some conditions that would be explained with what the omega claimed. For one, his bones appear to have been broken yet re-set with almost perfect precision. The drop, also, could have been caused by the stress of the opportunity to escape. Amongst others, the blisters of the omega’s feet are old scars that were re-opened in his attempt to run away, and his arms do have a type of deformation caused by being in the same position for too long. If he was being held down by restraints, then…”

“Is there any marks or scars of restraints on any of his limbs?” Yakov interrupted.

Dr. Keinn took a breath, as if to answer, but then shook her head. “No. Not even old ones.”

Yakov hummed. “What could explain his withdrawal, then? Could he have bought and consumed the drugs if he was being held captive?”

“He could have, if Mr. Denisovich was the one providing them, and forcefully making him consume them.”

Viktor’s eyes widened. He hadn’t thought of that.

But his boss wasn’t having none of it. He sighed deeply, collecting his bearings, before he spoke again. “So there’s nothing concrete you can’t tell us.”

Dr. Keinn frowned. “But I already did tell you. His bones…”

“…could have been broken before. Nothing tells us it was Denisovich who caused that.” Yakov spat back. “And we have no way of knowing exactly how old those scars were. Also, if whatever Viktor told me is right, then you have no way to determine what specific type of drug was given to the omega. It could have easily just been prescription drugs that he became addicted to. Nothing out of the ordinary.”

"I asked Otabek to check the house. He'll call me when he finds anything." Viktor added. But his boss frowned again, ignoring him.

The old alpha took another deep breath. His exasperation was beginning to show.

Viktor knew what the other alpha was doing, and while it made Dr. Keinn nervous -he could tell that too; it was hard not to, considering the amount of years Yakov had had practicing law-, it served for another completely different purpose, too.

See, the old alpha was doing something that made the process of speculation and evidence recollection easier for a defendant party, which was acting as the prosecution and simulating every possible counterstatement that could be issued in court. With his many years in the area, Yakov was an expert on quick thinking and fundamental contradictions. He could easily form a counter attack by just focusing on two main point of the argument; the concrete proof behind it, and the degree of supposition every fact held. Right now, the facts were weak, hard to use on court and easily diminished.

Now, Viktor knew another part of Yakov was just trying to force his own vision on his subordinate. It showed on his posture, and the way his mouth was crooked to one side; he was chewing on the inside of his cheek in a silent, yet directed accusation. That made Viktor angry.

“So, right now, there’s no proof to what you’re saying.” Yakov said finally.

“Yet that’s only because the police wouldn’t bring him here when they caught him. We could sue the police department for not sending him here before," Viktor said.

Yakov paused to consider it. "Maybe later. Right now, it wouldn't be good for us to have the police department at our backs all the time. And the people talk about that stuff. You'll lose popularity."

"How much is there to lose anymore?"

"Your reputation?" Yakov retorted. "Your titles? Achievements, career; hell, as far as I know you're not even getting paid for all of this!"

"He's innocent." Viktor replied stubbornly. "I'm sure of it now."

"Even when he was under the influence of sedatives, as she said?” he nodded towards Dr. Keinn without looking at her. “After a drop, to make matters worse?"

"If we're discussing that, then he is completely capable of being both coherent and conscious of what he's stating. Had the sedatives not worn out completely, he wouldn’t have awoken in the first place."

"And you can assure me that by your medical experience or...?"

"Yes. It's scientifically proven that that type of sedative must be fully degraded for the patient to wake. That's why we gave them to him; that way he wouldn't go through a drug-induced state that could cause him more stress."

Yakov nodded slowly. "Yes, ok. Then you have one point in favor towards your theory, Viktor."

"I think he really is telling the truth. It all fits perfectly to his statement! Why he was there, why he has all those scars… His crime is justified for a violation of the fundamental right of freedom from Denisovich’s part."

The old alpha's features fell with yet another sigh. "The evidence of the murder is all there, Viktor. He did it, I'm afraid. However, there’s nothing but his own statement telling us he was being held against his will. You need to accept that an alpha is not always right because of their instincts as much as you'd like."

"And you'll tell me there's not a single person involved in this case that is telling lies about the evidence? Not even the cops, or the family?"

"They have to tell the truth. Your client doesn't, yet. He's not acting according to what the law asks of him." Yakov said.

Something in the room shifted, and a dark, gloomy aura fella all over the place. The three of them wanted to speak and take part of the discussion, but Yakov was effectively shutting them down with every word he said.

"We can still help the omega and save a bit of your skin." Yakov added in the silence. "If he's saying he was being held captive in that house, and added to the drop, we can say he's delusional. Or, at least, he was under heavy medication by the time he committed the crime."

"How will that help him? We have no evidence of him being in a drop or under the influence of drugs at the time. We were too late to check on that."

"We also have no evidence on him being kidnapped either." Viktor grimaced. He had a point. "But the consequences will be different. We may be able to allege for exclusion of evidence for not taking the omega to the hospital before.

“Wait, you’re hoping to claim Yuuri is insane?”

“I’m hoping to claim your client was not on his right mind when he committed the crime.”

“You know better than anyone that that does not make him innocent!”

“Because he’s not, Viktor!” Yakov raged. “You’ve seen what he’s done, and right now the only thing keeping you from losing this case entirely is the fact that your client was not able to give a statement. Now that he is, he gave you something you can’t prove with concrete evidence. It’s his words against the whole country, and guess who’s the one who killed a loved man?!”

The chime of Viktor's cheerful ringtone interrupted the discussion. It was so out of place that it could have been comical for any outsider, yet it only managed to annoy the occupants of the room even more.

"Excuse me for a second." Viktor said, promptly turning away from the other two to have some privacy. "This is Viktor Nikiforov speaking."

"Hey. Why the tone?"

Viktor rolled his eyes at Otabek's own deadpan one. He decided to cut the chase short; he didn't have neither the time nor the patience to joke around right now.

"What is it?"

"You told me to call, remember? I'm in Lipedrov." he said. Viktor's interest picked up. "We finished searching the house."

Viktor's breath caught in his throat.

"And?"

He heard a sigh from the other side of the phone. "There are no traces of the omega in the house apart from the kitchen and hall. No hair, no prints, no blood. Sorry Viktor, but there's no proof of him being here before."

"Did you look for a basement?"

"Yeah, but there's none." Otabek said. "We searched all over the place, but there isn't a basement in the footprints either, and one of our experts concluded that with the soil here it's almost impossible to dig one, less if it was thought of by the time the house was built. There were no machines yet."

"And a shed?" his tone was becoming desperate. "Secret room? A closet?"

"Nothing. Nada." Viktor almost felt like crying. "We'll keep an eye open, though. We're already taking statements from the neighbors and family members for any suspicious behavior from Denisovich's part. Don't lose hope."

The constant beeping was the only thing that told Viktor Otabek had hung up.

For a few seconds, he didn't move, mouth gaping open with every unsaid word that was part of the turmoil inside his head. Viktor felt like throwing his phone to the floor, sadly realizing that he wouldn't feel better if he acted so impulsively.

However, when his eyes met Yakov's _I told you so_ gaze, and noticed he had actually heard the conversation from his corner in the room, he growled deeply, unable to hold it in.

"There has to be another place he was kept in!"

Yakov huffed out a pitying laugh. “Whatever you say."

Another phone chimed loudly, startling the three alphas in the room. Then, Dr. Keinn scrambled over her desk to answer it, anxious by all the attention she had attracted to herself. In the spur of the moment, Viktor had almost forgotten she was still there.

"Keinn," she said courtly. Her face impassive expression suddenly fell. "Yeah, okay. We're going," and hung up. Then, she looked at Viktor. "He's awake. The nurses were able to hold him down, but he's panicking."

"Come on then, Yakov" Viktor told him, smirking confidently. "You'll see for yourself."

 

* * *

 

 

The officer outside Yuuri’s room was fair and skinny, trying hard to make himself older with a middle-aged parting and the beginnings of a beard. It was the guy who Otabek had told to stay there. Behind him, the other officer, the annoying one, took one look at Viktor and Yakov and snapped to attention, chin tucked in. He held up his hand.

“Yakov's with me.”

He stopped in his tracks, just behind the younger officer.

"Go on in, your client's making a mess in there." he said instead, turning his gaze away.

Viktor just ignored him.

When they reached the room, Yakov put a hand on Viktor's shoulder and asked, “Does he know? About the murder?”

Viktor shook his head. “Not as far as I can tell."

Dr. Keinn went ahead of him. "I’m guessing there’s a certain amount of retrograde amnesia. It’s common enough after a head injury; usually temporal, but again, no guarantees.”

“And you didn’t tell him, no?”

Another shake of head, slower this time.

"Yuuri hasn’t asked. He… well, you’ll see what I mean. He’s not in great shape.”

They had been keeping their voices low, and on that his hand slid away from Viktor's shoulder. He opened the door.

No one would ever have known Yuuri for the honey-eyed kid Viktor had seen at first. His eyes were open, eyelids puffy and purple. His hair was stringy and darkened to black by days without washing; someone had tried to get some sweat out of it, but there were still matted clumps, strands sharpened into hard points for all the stress he'd suffered. His hands, small and fine like a girl's, were tight on the white blanket, a thin tube running into a great, red bruise on his arm. More tubing ran from his nose up around his ears, going to the back of his head so he could breathe more comfortably. All around him machines beeped, clear bags dripped, a pair of nurses tried to calm the kid down.

Dr. Keinn closed the door behind them, and Yuuri's gaze went straight towards the noise. He stared, dazed and dull-eyed, trying to figure out whether they were real. Not even the movement from the nurses walking away tore his sight from the door.

Viktor feared he wouldn't recognize him again. But the omega wasn't looking at him. Instead, it was Yakov who caught his attention. Just a whiff from his part was enough to make the machines go wild once more.

Right, Viktor thought. The smell! He couldn't stand being close to unknown alphas!

He hurried to his side and pushed away a nurse so he could help the omega.

“Yuuri,” Viktor said, gently, but he still flinched, hands jerking up to defend herself. “It's me, Honey. Remember me?"

Slowly, Yuuri’s eyes focused on Viktor's as recognition shone through them.

"It's you." he whispered, hoarse and soft with so much emotion that it went straight through Viktor's heart. "I thought you'd left..."

"It's okay, Yuuri. I'm right here."

A tear fell from the omega's eyes, and he sobbed once, raising his hands from the blanket to grab Viktor's. He took them and gave them a little squeeze.

Yuuri sobbed again. "You said you wouldn't leave."

Viktor smiled reassuringly. "I know, and I'm sorry, but I was just outside, Honey."

"I thought I was back there." Yuuri admitted, and it was at that point that the dam broke, and he started sobbing as he clung to Viktor's shirt desperately.

The alpha let him cry. He really didn't care about his shirt getting ruined with snot and tears, because he felt like he would start crying at any given time, too. He glanced towards the spot Yakov and Dr. Keinn were perched in, and realized Yakov was certainly not expecting that reaction coming from the omega. The smell of confusion mixed with a scent meant for comfort reached Viktor's nose. It was dull, but Viktor had known his boss for a while now, so he could recognize it with ease.

After a few minutes, Yuuri stopped crying, but didn't move from his spot on Viktor's chest. He sniffled occasionally, basking in the scent of protection that Viktor was emitting.

“Something happened,” he suddenly said. It came out thick and clogged, through the sadness and fear.

Viktor sighed.

“Yes. I’m afraid so.”

He turned a chair to the side of the bed and sat down. Across from him, Yakov did the same, but Dr. Keinn stood by the end of the bed, far away from the action. For a moment, Viktor feared the other alphas would frighten Yuuri, but he only flinched once at the noise the chair made scraping over the floor.

“What happened?” he said, more steadily. "I have so many blanks, and I feel like I should know, but I can't even-"

His breath picked up, and with it came a new wave of anguish and fear.

"It's alright, Yuuri. Don't force yourself too much. I'll tell you." Viktor said, rubbing his back for reassurance. Then, he took a deep breath to calm himself and said, "my name is Viktor. Viktor Nikiforov, and I'm you lawyer."

"Viktor..." Yuuri repeated, finally moving away from his chest to look at the alpha. Viktor nodded. "And...?"

"Yakov Feltsmann," Viktor added. "He's my boss. But he's just here to help me on your case, you don't have to pay attention to him."

Fortunately, Yakov didn't react to the statement.

"Why do I need a lawyer?" he asked, timidly. Viktor frowned at him.

“We received a call, about a week ago. An attack in a house; supposed burglary. They found you running through the woods by the house. You were in a drop, unconscious, but both myself and the doctors have been taking good care of you."

Yuuri said, "I was…Yeah, I-I think I remember you and, a dog?"

Viktor chuckled. "Makkachin." he said, nodding. Then, his face turned sour once more. "Can you remember anything about the attack?”

“Attack.” He was struggling to swim to the surface of the memories, through the vast weight of nothingness bearing down on his mind. “No. What…How does it relate to...”

Then his eyes came alive, flaring incandescent brown with pure terror.

"Yuuri, hey,"

But it looked like Yuuri wasn't listening.

“The man. I-”

Every muscle in Viktor's body wanted to fling him out the door. “I’m so sorry.”

“No! Is he... where-” He was fighting to sit up. Yuuri was too weak to do it, but not too weak to rip the IV out of his arm.

“I’m so sorry,” Viktor said again. He cupped a hand around his shoulder and pressed down, as gently as he could. “Yuuri, the man is dead.”

The moment after those words had a million shapes. Viktor had seen people -generally family members of the victims- howl till their voices were scraped away, or freeze like they were hoping it would pass them over, crawl on to rip out someone else's rib cage, if they just stayed still enough. He's held some back from smashing their faces off walls, trying to knock out the pain.

Yuuri Katsuki was beyond any of that. He had done all his defending seven nights before; no force left for this. He dropped back on the worn pillowcase and cried, steadily and silently, on and on, like he hadn't cried a river some minutes ago.

His face was red and contorted, but he didn’t move to cover it. Yakov leaned over, distressed by the smell of helplessness that flooded the room, and put a hand on Yuuri's -the one without the IV line- and the omega gripped it until his knuckles whitened. At that moment, he just needed someone to be there for him. It didn't matter if it was someone he didn't know.

All he wanted was to bask in the smell of _safe and warm and protected_ that both alphas were trying to give him.

Behind them a machine beeped, faintly and steadily, as Dr. Keinn played with the buttons. Viktor focused on counting the beeps and wished he had brought chips, gum, mints, anything that would let him chew on anything else that wasn't his own lips.

After a long time, the crying wore itself away and Yuuri laid still, cloudy, red-brimmed eyes staring at the roof.

That thick, ragged whisper: “Are you sure? Did you… see him yourself?”

“I’m afraid we're sure.” Yakov said gently.

“Yuuri, I know of your situation, I'm going to do everything I can to prove it's true.” He didn’t look at Viktor. His mouth started to convulse and Viktor quickly intervened, before he could get lost in it again, "Can you tell us what you remember about that night?”

He shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“That’s OK. We understand. Could you take a moment and think back, see if anything comes to you?”

“I don’t… There’s nothing. I can’t...” He was tensing up, his hand tightening on Yakov’s again. Then, he froze. "His name. I need to know-"

"Dmitri Denisovich." Viktor said, interrupting him, knowing exactly the effect it would make on the omega to _finally_ know something, _anything_ related to the man that held him against his will.

"He did have a name after all, huh?" he smiled darkly as another set of tears fell.

Viktor couldn't have felt sadder to see a smile forming on that beautiful face.

“What’s the last thing you do remember?”

Yuuri gazed at nothing and for a moment and Viktor thought he had drifted away, but then he whispered, "He… _Denisovich_ ," then paused, considering the name for a second, as if it made some kind of sense to finally know what it was, "came down the stairs. I was cold, and tired. C-couldn't move...”

“That’s good,” Viktor said, and Yakov gave his hand an encouraging squeeze. “That’s great. Any little thing could help us. And after that...?”

"I, ah. He carried me, over his shoulder. It was…I felt sick. He was taking me to the house..."

"Taking you to the house? You weren't trapped there?" Yakov interrupted, Viktor looked at him with a hopeful stare. He seemed taken aback by the comment.

Yuuri shook his head. "Not the house. That was only for the winter. Far from it, uh, some miles away, but I don't really…Can't remember... "

"Good, perfect, Yuuri. You're doing great. What about later?"

A sharp gasp interrupted Viktor's excited train of thoughts.

“I don’t know. I- I don’t know! The next thing was in here, the doctor—”

"Mr. Nikiforov, he's panicking." Dr. Keinn announced from the side, and just then did Viktor notice the ragged breath coming out of the omega's mouth in little, short gasps.

"Hey, come on Yuuri, take it easy. You don't have to tell us any more. That's enough."

Yet Yuuri just kept crying, as if all hope to be saved had just crumbled.

"Am I… going to prison?" he asked, with just a string of voice left. His eyes shone as he looked at Viktor for the first time in a while, once more, asking for help. Needing to be saved.

Viktor wanted to shake his head, assure the omega that everything was going to be fine. But he couldn't, so he just stared at him, uttering no words. The other seemed to understand.

Nothing he could say was certain. Still, he sent Yuuri a determined stare.

"I'll do everything in my power to keep you from that. I promise."

And Yuuri chose to believe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeey again!  
> Sooo a little something for those who have stuck up till now!  
> Well, apart from thanking you for all the support for the story (thank you so much for all the awesome comments! They really make my day!) I'd like to tell you that the story is going to undergo some modifications from this point on.  
> For one, I'll start writing from Yuuri's POV, so I can properly explain what is going on through his mind. This is where some mean stuff could be described, mostly doing with what he has to say (and think) of the time he was held captive. Having said that, there might be some flashbacks that could be a little explicit. I'll add warnings to every chapter anyways, but to keep you guys warned beforehand.  
> Apart from that, the case is going to have a rest for a while until I figure out how to proceed with it. Don't panic, Viktor is using his free time to take care of the smol bean and get some more evidence. Also, character interactions (because there's not enough Yurio nor Phichit in this fic (btw, THE GLOVE OMG please tell me I'm not the only one!!).  
> And don't worry! The update schedule is still the same.  
> Thank you again for reading!


	13. Trust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: slight mentions of rape and abuse.  
> (not described, only mentioned, but the warning is there 'cause I really don't want to freak anyone out.)  
> Yuuri is telling his story, but not on his POV yet. We need the information he's giving and obviously, a neutral point of view to get the overall.  
> Enjoy!

“Trust me, okay Yuuri? I’ll guide you through it.”

The omega nodded, but it was shaky, doubtful. His hands came up to fidget with the blankets covering the rest of his body, and to Viktor it was clear he was nervous.

In situations like these, he was used to the dark, small interrogation rooms of whatever police station his client was tucked in. They weren’t comfortable at all, but it served to one purpose only; to tear the accused down, release the whole truth so their lawyers could have everything they needed to work with. To be honest, Viktor enjoyed that part. His words, sharp and hurtful like knives cut straight into the accused alibies, made them spit out everything Viktor needed to hear. It was one of the reasons why he was such a successful lawyer.

Now, Viktor wanted the truth, but he felt bad for his client. They were in a comfortable hospital room; nice temperature, no damp, chilly air. Still, Yuuri was shaking. And the alpha knew and understood the reasons behind his fear.

The trauma that the poor kid would be carrying on his back made Viktor want to hold him and never let go until Yuuri knew he was safe. As much as the omega needed a specialist in traumatic events and recovery, he wouldn’t be granted one for the duration of the case, unless he plead for mental illness.

Yet it all depended on what Viktor was told now. Yuuri was awake and conscious; they’d be able to know how to proceed after everything was said.

So, leather-bound notebook and pen in hand, Viktor cleared his throat and spoke.

“Okay, so let’s start with simple stuff. What’s your full name?” Yuuri’s incredulous look made Viktor smile sheepishly, and he shrugged. “It’s compulsory to ask that, sorry.”

“Oh,” Yuuri says, his face going smooth and apologetic. “Yuuri Katsuki.”

Viktor nodded and scribbled the name in a blank page. Long, elegant and curvy; it caught Yuuri’s attention.

“That’s romanized,” he pointed out. “Do you need the Japanese way?”

“Hmm, I could use that in the future,” Viktor said, turning the notebook around and giving the pen to Yuuri, who took both with shaky hands.

However, as the omega gripped the pen tightly in his hand, he didn’t make any move to write on the paper. Yuuri looked at his hand, the one that had the pen, and with the other switched its position, a look of frustration upon his features. Then, with a shaky breath, his shoulders dropped in defeat.

“I don’t… can’t remember how to use a pen.”

The words downed onto Viktor’s heart like a sinking boat. “Oh, Yuuri.”

“No, it’s alright.” He was quick to say back, handing the notebook and pen back to Viktor. “I just thought I wouldn’t forget something as important as that, it’s all… Please, continue.”

There was a twitch to his lips, a wincing in the eye. Yuuri was not indifferent to the fact that he couldn’t remember how to write anymore, even when he stated the contrary. Viktor sighed, leaning backwards in his chair. There was nothing more he could do to help Yuuri apart from continuing with the conversation.

“Alright. So, age?”

“Twenty o-” he stopped himself, shutting his mouth so fast his teeth clicked together. Then, with renewed vigor, he said, “It sure isn’t 2014 anymore, right?”

Viktor cleared his throat and said, “It’s 2017. June.”

If Viktor concentrated enough, he was sure he could hear the seconds ticking away in his wristwatch. The silence was deafening.

“Three years. I was in there for three years.” Yuuri finally breathed. “I’m twenty-three now.”

The though was mostly voiced for him, and himself only. His brows pulled together, like he wanted to react somehow, but all that shows is a conflicted gaze that tells Viktor nothing. He wants to ask why, but it’s not his place to do so. Not yet at least. If he goes too fast, he fears he might bring forth memories that Yuuri wouldn’t be able to handle right now.

Viktor was walking on a thin layer of ice here. He had to be careful. Whatever Yuuri wanted to say, he should say it at his own rhythm.

“What, um… What happens now?” Yuuri whispers, his fingers now tremoring slightly.

“Now we talk. I take notes while you speak, and I won’t interrupt you much. I need you to tell me your story.” Viktor says.

“Wait, before that, could I ask you something?” Yuuri interrupted, raising slightly from the bed.

“Yes? What is it?”

He opened his mouth to form the question, seemingly glad for having been given the chance. But no noise came, and Yuuri groaned softly at his inability to come up with the words he wanted to say. So Viktor waited. He put up a calm, reassuring smile, releasing some more of his calming scent to let Yuuri know he could take as much time as he needed.

It hurt Viktor to think this kid hadn’t been able to voice his concerns and fears for so long. The fact that, even now, he seemed afraid to do so was nerve-wracking.

The relieved posture he adopted when he finally arranged his thoughts into something that made sense was something Viktor wouldn’t tire of seeing.

“How come I have a lawyer already?” he said meekly, and quickly stammered an explanation at the look of surprise on Viktor’s face. “I mean, I can’t remember much, but I know I must have been in a cell at some point. How did you… get to be my lawyer if I never asked for one?”

But Viktor smiled once more, and the omega breathed out the air he’d been holding.

“That’s exactly why, Yuuri. You weren’t able to ask for one, and the court couldn’t find anyone who’d take your case. See, I come from a private firm, and while we usually wouldn’t take these kinds of cases, yours turned out to be a strange one. It had something fishy. So, I decided I’d just take it and see where it got me.”

“But why, though? I mean, I was unconscious, and there was just the proof that I… that the man was…”

Yuuri bit his lips, looking at his hands in shame.

“Hey, it’s alright, don’t force it.” Viktor said comfortingly. “But I understand what you’re saying. Hell, everyone I know has called me crazy for it. But it’s my job, you know?” He paused, gauging the omega’s reaction before speaking once more. He smiled at himself. “And still, there was this… feeling. I felt like things were not right, that the whole picture wasn’t there for us to see, like everyone thought. And then, when I met you… I knew there was a reason why you’ve done that, and I knew you didn’t deserve the way you were being treated back then.”

“So you brought me to your house?” Viktor laughed at the shy smile showing on Yuuri’s face.

“Couldn’t leave you in that cell. You deserved to be treated better.”

“What if I hadn’t been in a drop? What if I was conscious when they brought me there?”

“They would have taken you to the hospital right away, most probably.” Viktor grimaced. Everything could have gone way better than it did, to be honest. But he wasn’t one to blame a perfectly natural reaction for the outcome of the situation. “But you couldn’t help it, so you needed a voice, someone who could act in your favor. I made a vow to defend the innocent; what kind of lawyer would I be if I hadn’t stepped up when I did?”

Yuuri nods, and his Adam apple bobs with how thickly he swallows. He doesn’t look at Viktor, and the same look of shock and conflict flashes on his features before a calm, smooth expression appears on his face. His hands go lax on top of the covers, and he sniffles.

“Thank you, Viktor.” He rasps, looking up. Fresh tears are collecting on his eyelashes, but the smile on his rosy pink lips is comforting on Viktor’s eyes. “Thank you for believing in me. I- I’m sorry I wasn’t compliant enough in the beginning, but… I’ll do my best, so I can make it easier for you too.”

“I’m still not done, kid. My job’s not finished until you can walk freely again, just how you deserve it.” Viktor settled in his seat, breathing now with a lot more ease. “Just, tell me all you know, okay? That’s all I ask for.”

“Okay, I’ll try my best.”

With that, Viktor took a hold of the notebook again. Yuuri doesn’t start talking immediately, probably just figuring out what to say first, Viktor thinks.

“Start at square one, Yuuri. What’s the last thing you remember before you dropped? Do you think you can tell me that?”

He nodded, took a deep breath, and spoke. “I remember being in the room I was kept in. I was laying there, face-down on top of the mattress I slept on. Too tired to move, and it was really cold. It was one of the days he was supposed to come, but he didn’t come at the usual time. It was way too early for him to be there.”

Viktor hummed, writing down word after word. When he realized Yuuri had stopped, he looked up to find him staring expectantly at him.

“Is something the matter, Yuuri?”

But the omega flinched, looking away. “Sorry, I’m trying to remember, but it’s all really messed up in my head.”

“Go at your own pace, I’ll keep up with it.”

“Alright.” He took another deep breath. “So, he came down the stairs of the room. He told me something, I- I don’t know what he said, I couldn’t understand it. He used to say it quite often, though, and I believe it had something to do with “move” or “wake up”.”

“ _Vstavay_?” Viktor asked, and Yuuri flinched so hard he banged his head on the wall behind him. “Yuuri! Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah. It’s just… That’s what he said, every time he-” He stopped himself, looking at Viktor with watery brown eyes. “What does it mean?”

“It means “get up”, to put it simple.”

“Oh.” He said softly, his voice trembling as much as his shoulders. He casts his gaze away once more, but he resumes his story soon before that. “Okay, so he came down, told me to get up. But I couldn’t. I felt really sick, and I couldn’t even open my eyes to look at him. And he got mad. I- I think he spoke again? But I really don’t remember if he did or not, I just now he walked over to me and forced me to turn around.”

Yuuri couldn’t hide the hitch in his breath. Viktor tenses from the story alone, but the look on Yuuri’s face almost makes him want to cry.

“What happened after that?”

“He tried to get me to react. Slapped my face once or twice, snapped his fingers next to my ears, but I didn’t do as much as flinch. I was too tired for that. But I don’t really know why.”

Those words penetrated into Viktor, sending him reeling back and shuddering with the small admission. To his mind came the thought that had revolved around his head for the past three days, and he couldn’t help interrupting Yuuri to voice it.

“Yuuri, the doctors found drugs in your body when I brought you here.” Yuuri looked up at that, leaning a little forward with a confused look on his face. “You had a withdrawal from supposed long-term use, but from what you tell me, it’s possible you could have gone through the withdrawal from before, hence the reason you were so tired.”

“Drugs?” He whispered, surprised. For a second, Viktor almost believed Yuuri would prove him wrong on his supposition with the drugs, destroying the strongest counter-statement they had for the matter. But then, the omega’s eyes lit up, and he gasped. “The pills. He used to give me pills every now and then, uh, on a weekly basis I think.”

“Do you have any idea what they were?”

Yuuri shook his head. “No idea. They made me feel groggy, much like how I’m feeling right now. But, more relaxed? I- I don’t know why, but I didn’t have any more strength to fight after he forced them down my throat. I always figured they were just sedatives.”

Viktor wrote that down with as much detail as he could, regretting not having a recorder but realizing he could always get Yuuri’s statement taken by a police officer. It was no use of forcing him to talk when he wasn’t even close to ready.

“Hey Viktor?” he suddenly said, getting the alpha to look back at him.

“Sorry, I spaced out.” Viktor apologized. Then, noticing the concern in Yuuri’s eyes, he frowned. “What is it?”

“I-I just… Do you think I have any chance to- to be proven innocent, for what I did?” He whimpers, letting a wrecked sob escape from his trembling lips as he grabs onto the blankets again, clinging to them for dear life. “I mean, I killed a man. I-”

The alpha closed his notebook, putting it on top of the bed and leans forward to put his hand on top of Yuuri’s own. “Why did you kill him?” he asks instead of trying to comfort. Comfort won’t work now, what he needs is to convince Yuuri that he’s innocent, as much as he believes otherwise.

“He was hurting me,” Yuuri whispers. “I had to get away.”

Viktor nodded, tilting his head so he can look at Yuuri in the eye. “So you were trying to protect yourself.”

“I- I thought I was going to _die_!” Yuuri continues, sobbing harder. “I thought I could run away, then, and he came- he came down the stairs with a gun, and I couldn’t- I was _so close_ to leave. Run to the nearest house, but I…“

The gasps were becoming desperate now, and the tears wouldn’t stop falling. Viktor rose his other hand, running his fingers through Yuuri’s sweaty hair, feeling the softness of his black, silky curls. “What happened then?”

“Tried to fight him. Tried to stop him from shooting me. But I was so scared, and he just kept shouting, and pushing me, and the gun was so _loud!_ ” A choked sob permeated the room, “He- he was winning, he was going to kill me. But then, I saw red everywhere, and he stopped fighting. When I looked down I-“

His voice suddenly cut, and Yuuri’s hands flew to his mouth as a new wave of tremors ran through his body. Viktor couldn’t help but feel compelled to keep listening, even when he knew what happened next. But the sight wasn’t pleasing, not at all, and the smell surrounding them of so very scared omega didn’t help to that image.

Against his first judgement, Viktor goes and hugs Yuuri; he rounds his arms around his lithe body, pressing him against his chest, a little tighter than usual, but the omega welcomed it by switching his grip on the blankets for his shirt.

“I killed a man. I should go to prison. It’s what’s right, isn’t it?”

He cried, hard, and Viktor couldn’t believe someone so pure existed in the same world as the man who had kept him suffering for so long.

Yuuri spent three years captive, in an unknown place, with an unknown man talking to him in an unknown language. Still, he felt responsible for killing the man who made him go through all that, and still believed he should be punished for doing it. Viktor just kept hugging him, thinking on what to say next.

He licked his lips, watching as Yuuri made himself smaller in his hold.

Then, he had an idea.

“What did he do to you in that room, Honey?” The flinch and subsequent silence told Viktor he really didn’t want to answer. “Please, Yuuri. I need to know, so I know how I can help.”

“I can’t tell. It- it all comes back to my head, and I can’t-”

“Shh, hey, I understand. What if I ask you, and you just nod or shake your head. Is that alright? Just simple yes no questions.” Viktor tells him softly, and after a while, he feels Yuuri nod towards his chest. “Okay, alright. So, tell me, did that man beat you up in there?”

A small, almost unnoticeable nod. The alpha hums approvingly. “Alright Honey. Did he beat you just because?”

Yuuri shakes his head. And then a soft whisper comes from somewhere by Viktor’s chest. “Just when I was bad. Only when I didn’t do what he wanted me to do.”

“Good, Yuuri. You’re doing great.” Viktor praised, rubbing circles on Yuuri’s back. That seemed to calm the omega down considerably. Still, the sobs kept wrecking his body. “Now, this is something I need to ask, and I need you to be honest to me, now more than ever.”

He knows the silence that follow is building up the tension, and he doesn’t want to scare Yuuri anymore. But he also knows this question is the worse, and he’s had the need to voice it since he learned about the omega’s awful predicament. He’s searching for the nicest words, and he finds there’s no way to say them without being hurtful.

So he just gives up. Better rip off the band aid fast, right?

“Yuuri, did Denisovich ever sexually abuse of you?”

The high-pitched, choked whimper gives Viktor the answer he was expecting. And even so, it made the alpha’s heart finally shatter into thousands of pieces.

He hugged even tighter, cradling Yuuri in his arms as he cried his repressed feelings out. It was too much, all too much, and the anger he was trying to keep at bay was seeping through his pores. The strong, pungent scent was in no means directed to Yuuri, and Viktor was aware the omega must know that. Still, it didn’t help to calm his nerves.

“No more-” he heard a broken voice say. “Please no more. I can’t-”

“No more Yuuri. I promise, no more.” Viktor repeated after him, swallowing the lump forming in his throat. “But let me tell you something. What you did, you did it to protect yourself. I know you feel awful for killing that man, but he did awful things to you, too; things that no one deserves to experience. Yet you lived through them, and you got away. You had a right to fight back, and you used it. Murder is wrong, and punishable by law; but so is kidnap, and so is rape. He took away your freedom, and by doing so, you were immediately excused for almost anything and everything you could have done in order to get it back.”

“B- but it wasn’t my right to choose whether he lived or- _or not_!”

“That’s not what’s being taken into account here. You were overpowered, and every court in the country will agree that an alpha physically overpowers an omega any time. Plus, he had the gun.” Viktor explains, voice softening towards the end. “It’s not murder, but self-defense. You’re innocent, Yuuri, and I’m going to prove that with everything I have; even if it means having to prove it to you first.”

Before Yuuri could give an answer, the lock on the door clicked open. When Viktor turned his head to see who it was, he found Yakov standing under the doorway with an astonished look on his face.

Wordlessly, the older alpha closed the door behind him and went to stand by the bed, closer to Viktor than the terrified omega in his arms, who’d apparently let go of Viktor’s shirt, but had yet to make a motion to separate from his chest.

Yakov’s shoulders slumped then, and he whispered in Russian, “The court knows Yuuri’s awake. They are letting you keep him for as long as we pay bail.”

“Okay. That’s good.” Viktor answered softly, in Russian too. “When do they need the payment so I can take him home?”

But Yakov shook his head. “The firm already paid for it.” Viktor’s eyes widen at that, but Yakov didn’t stop there. “And Dr. Keinn said Yuuri could be released today if he passes her examination. She’s coming to see him in a while. And bringing some food with her.”

Viktor smiled. “Hear that, Yuuri?” he said, back in English so the omega could understand. “You could be coming home today. Makka will be glad to see you again.”

He just got a small nod as acknowledgement, but Yuuri didn’t move from his spot.

“We are going home,” Viktor repeated, mostly to himself. “and everything is going to be alright.”

He received no answer this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry :(  
> But do not worry, my people:  
> The fluff™ is coming.


	14. Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNINGS: it's Yuuri's POV now, and he remembers some stuff that happened to him while he was held captive. Nothing too explicit, but not for the faint-hearted either.  
> EDIT: the format was fucked up, I hope I fixed it now, upsss

Yuuri’s eyes were stuck to the window next to him the whole ride from the hospital. He’d been hesitant at first, eyes darting from one point to the other in quick succession, taking everything as though he’d never see it again. But, after he allowed himself to a quick glance to the side, towards the alpha next to him, Viktor smiled encouragingly, so he settled.

The omega was looking out of the car window with a permanent smile on his face. He was taking in every new sight they passed with a kind of innocent curiosity -mainly because he’d forgotten what the outside was like, but also because up until now, he hadn't realized he’d been in a different country that whole time. 

Again and again his stomach tightened like a knot at the thought of what might happen if he closed his eyes for too long. Would he go back to that place? Would he stay in this dream for a while longer? The radiant sun hurt his eyes as Yuuri tried his best to keep his eyes open for as long as he could, but he couldn't risk it. 

In some point, Viktor opened the window, startling him as the wind came in and ruffled his hair. Still, Yuuri kept smiling, taking a deep breath and inhaling the cold Russian breeze. For once, he didn't fear the chill it gave him. 

It was like the thought of being free was finally downing on him.   
 

* * *

 

The thought was short lived. 

He could smell his own scent sharpening when they entered the driveway, looking back one last time towards the outside as they parked. It’s okay, he tried to tell himself, Viktor is nice, he won’t hurt you.  

“We’re here” Viktor stated, turning off the engine of the car and looking at Yuuri. “Ready to see your new house?” 

Yuuri didn't actually know how to respond to that. But even if Viktor turned out to be someone different than who he met at the hospital, the omega doubted he could ever be as much of an asshole as Denisovich was. He still couldn't help but see how far the neighbor’s houses where -not too far, he could make that run if he needed to-. 

Gritting his teeth, Yuuri gathered his thoughts and pushed them back into a corner in his head. Then, he opened the door to leave the car. With an inhale to steel himself, he stepped into the house after Viktor. 

The alpha closed the door behind them, and then smiled again, ever brighter. “Well, here’s your new home. This side’s a common place, and there’s the kitchen. If you need anything from there you can just take it, Yuuri, and there are books and magazines laying around all over the place. You just take them and find a nice seat.” he motioned towards the room with lazy gestures. “It’s not that fancy, but I think it’s quite cozy, huh?” 

Viktor began babbling about some other stuff then, and Yuuri stopped listening for a second, taking in high ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows, an open area with plenty of unused space, and classy furniture. It was fancy indeed, but Yuuri couldn't’t measure if Viktor was just trying to appear humble or this was just not as much as he could afford. He did say he was a pretty successful lawyer, didn't he? The only piece that seemed out of place was a purple handmade-knitted blanket that laid draped over the back of the couch. 

A quick whiff made his nerves settle a little. The place smelled like alpha, but not the musky smell he was used to. Instead, it was a strong yet gentle scent; subtle, with a tinge of lavender, wood and something like chocolate. Yuuri had no idea how those could merge, yet they did, and the result was way more soothing than he could have imagined. 

“Let me show you your room,” Viktor finally said, getting Yuuri’s attention once more. He started going further into the house.  

They walked through a hallway that had a door right to his left, its walls covered in artsy pictures, the kind that were meant to decorate instead of show. They were big prints, surrounded by simple frames and hung at different intervals. Viktor rounded a corner and Yuuri followed, meeting with another set of doors at the end of the hall. 

“Alright, so you have two options for your bedroom, Yuuri. First, we have one that’s only yours,” Viktor said, and opened the door to their left.

When Yuuri poked inside, he saw a twin-sized bed towards the far end, with dull yellow covers and white throw pillows. The sun rays filtered through the window, giving the room a warm atmosphere. A desk was tucked up to the wall, and again, some pictures were hung on the cream-white walls that were otherwise naked. It was simple, yet it gave Yuuri the feeling of a well taken-care-of room, even though he was sure it was only a guestroom. 

“It’s cozy” he murmured, because who was he kidding? It was the prettiest room he’d seen in the last three years. 

Viktor hummed in agreement and closed the door. “The bathroom is by the hallway we came from. But I still have another room.” 

They walked a few steps more, and Viktor opened another door. This time, he went inside the room, so Yuuri did the same. 

It was a lived-in master bedroom that smelled very much as Viktor. There were magazines and books scattered around; some on the floor, some on the bedside tables, others lied on the windowsill. A queen-sized bed was to their left, tucked against the wall. Yuuri was surprised when he recognized his own scent lingering in the air, and he gasped when he noticed it. Taking a more throughout look around the room -taking in the color of the blankets, the light in the room, the smell so characteristically Viktor’s- he remembered. 

“I was here,” Yuuri said, taking a few brave steps towards the bed. “I remember here.” 

“Yes. You were here.” Viktor confirmed, smiling gently. “This is my room, but I kind of figured you might need my scent for… you know, reassurance. But of course it was just my supposition. If you want your own room, that’s fine with me.” 

Yuuri didn't respond. Instead, he reached out to the mattress, pressing slightly, felling the softness of it. The memories came in waves; hazy and dulled, but so real that he couldn't believe he’d forgotten. He remembered the sweet, juicy taste of fruit, the warmth of another body next to him… 

Then, suddenly, he turned. “You said that you had a dog.” He stated, and then almost immediately blushed at Viktor’s surprised face. The omega lowered his gaze. “S-sorry, I just remembered and… Sorry.” 

He heard Viktor chuckle, and he raised his head slightly to see him staring in amusement. Then, the alpha whistled. “Makka! Come see who’s here!” 

From another part of the house, Yuuri heard a bark, and he could swear all breath left his body when he did. His eyes widened impossibly big, and his body stopped all movement once he turned back towards the door, where the clacking of paws against floor resounded louder and closer. 

By the door frame stood a big, fluffy brown poodle, and to his mind came the memory of himself and his own dog, running on the beach, jumping into the water, sleeping together on cold nights… The dog trotted inside the room warily, going directly to Yuuri, tail waving with excitement as the omega dropped to the floor to pet it. His hands touched soft, tangled fur, and a sob ripped his throat. 

Guilt churned in his stomach when he thought back to his dog, and how he’d probably be gone by now. He remembered Vicchan being sick and old, barely able to get up when called for. He’d been too thin the last time Yuuri saw him, and he remembered how his mom told him to enjoy those last days with him, because he could pass away anytime. 

And he didn't listen. He disappeared with no trace, and Vicchan must have died alone, with no one to be there with him on his last moments. Yuuri felt his nose clogging up; his eyes hurt, and he felt the tears dampening his cheeks as this other dog licked his face. 

He missed his own dog in that hellhole of a room. Missed his warmth, missed his energy. Most of all, missed what Vicchan meant to him; his family, his home, his friends. 

He had cried rivers for them the first time that man hurt him. He’d kissed people before, and had been in a couple of relationships, but having sex was something that still hadn't entered his mind. Denisovich was a stranger, brute and mean, and he hurt Yuuri so bad that first time that he thought his body would rip in half. Yuuri cried and struggled against him the next couple of times, too. But soon, he learnt not to. He learnt to stay still and let his mind wander to anything else that he could make use of. Anything but that cold, dark and humid place.  

That man had taken him away from his family, locked him up and used him in ways he knew were awfully wrong, and Yuuri had eventually given up. 

But now the man was dead, and Yuuri was out. He’d refused to die, but had killed another person instead. But that was not wrong, was it? Viktor said it wasn't, but to his mind came the smell of that man; strong and pungent, rotten, something like burnt plastic that made Yuuri choke and retch every time the alpha came down the hole. 

Yuuri, hey. 

And Yuuri hated that the man still hurt him when he was already out. He hated that he’d have to remember all of it, while the monster who did that to him couldn't be punished anymore. 

Honey, are you with me? 

But then his senses were overflown with chocolate and wood, spicy yet gentle, the kind of alpha that the omega remembered from somewhere safe… 

Yuuri blinked. His forehead was pressed against platinum strands of hair, nose tucked into the spot between Viktor’s neck and shoulder. A hand was pressing down on the top of his head, softly, and Yuuri was still holding a strand of fur tightly in his fist. He startled, and tugged himself away from the embrace with soft yet frantic movements, looking up to meet worried, deep blue eyes. 

“Viktor?” 

The alpha drew his brows together, yet a look of encouragement placed itself upon his sharp features. “Hey, I lost you for a second.” 

Yuuri blushed, and suddenly realized he was holding onto the dog’s fur with too much strength. The poodle didn't seem to mind, though. What’s more, it was looking up at the omega with sparkly brown eyes that brought the tears back into Yuuri’s. He really looked like Vicchan. 

“Sorry. I spaced out.” He apologized, head bowed low in shame. 

But Viktor hummed disapprovingly, and he flinched slightly at the gesture. However, the alpha was quick to speak again.

“Did Makka give you bad memories?” Yuuri glanced up for a second, taken aback by his supposition. He was about to open his mouth to try and retort it, believing Viktor could take away the dog -Makka- and he’d never see it again. But, at the alpha’s knowing look, he shut his mouth and just nodded slightly. “Oh, Yuuri… I’m sorry, I didn't think that thorough when I called her. Do you want me to take her…?” 

“No!” he exclaimed, more desperately than intended. “Please, don’t.” He tried again, calmer this time. But his chest was tight, stomach cramping again. He didn't want her to leave, couldn't stand it if he took her away. Not again, never again. 

“Okay, okay. I won't, I promise. I'm not taking Makkachin anywhere." 

It's an embarrassing minute in which Viktor just stares intently at him, hands raised up in a gesture that's supposed to appear harmless, but Yuuri can't get himself to look up properly. Makkachin whines at his side, and nudges the omega's hand with her wet nose, inviting him to pet her. But Yuuri can't move. 

He snapped at Viktor, who had been nothing but kind to him this whole time. Ever since he woke up, disoriented and confused in that hospital room, he knew this alpha was good. He's scared and lost, still, but when he looks up once more, ready to apologize again, he shivers. 

Viktor looks different somehow. Maybe it’s the lighting of the room, the last rays of sunshine seeping through the window, but his face seems softer. Even though he’s drawn up to his full height, his blue eyes are bright and warm, and his silver hair flows gently over his face. This facade makes Yuuri want to believe such a gentle being can't be real, but the thought gets stuck in his mind somewhere.  

A small smile graces Viktor’s pale face. “There’s no need to look so worried, Yuuri,” he says kindly. “I understand you're scared, and that's perfectly okay. I promise you, you're safe here, and you'll be safe for as long as you're under my care, case wise or not." 

Yuuri swallows down dry air, and asks, "Why can you be so sure?" 

There is a pause. “Because I'd always been. I told you before," Viktor says, walking to Yuuri's side and leaning back on the bed, looking at him from below. It's a posture that's meant to erase any trace of intimidation, and the omega is thankful for the gesture. But Viktor's face sombers once more. "I’m so sorry for what’s happened to you, and I'm sorry that I have to phrase it this way, but it's a relief that you managed to get out of there, even with everything that happened afterwards. I know you'll be alright.” 

And something in Yuuri snaps. He knows all the man means is that Yuuri’s wounds will heal and he’ll regain his strength and whatnot, but what about after? What about the case? 

“You can’t say that,” Yuri hisses out through clenched teeth. “You can’t say I’ll be all right when you have no idea what I've been through. You weren't there to see it, and you weren't there to clean up the mess that sick man left behind every single time.” 

Viktor’s expression has wavered when Yuuri turns back to him. "I didn't mean-" 

"I know you didn't mean that, but it's all I can think about! I have nothing else to tire my mind with, and it's driving me insane that there's even the possibility that I'll go to prison for what I did. Even worse, what if it's all just some other dream and I'm still down there with that man?" 

And Yuuri is crying again. He's not mad, just scared, and he wants to say it; but he can’t even continue, so he turns away to look back down at his feet. Viktor probably does know what happened, he saw the evidence, didn't he? He should have, Yuuri thinks; the alpha must have seen how he left that man, lying on the entrance of his own home with his head split open. He can't cope with the memory that seems so clear now in his head. 

Viktor sighs. 

“Yuuri, please listen to me,” he implores, reaching out and grabbing the hand that the omega has left handing at his side, rubbing the palm in circling motions. “That is not what I meant. But I can promise you that you'll be alright in that sense too. Not tomorrow, not next week, maybe not even next year. One day, though, you’ll be all right. I know I could never possibly understand what’s happened to you. But you won’t be like this forever, okay? Healing takes time, a long time, it doesn't happen overnight or because someone has been kind. But it does happen eventually.” 

"And if I'm locked back up in prison? How much can I heal with another set of four walls surrounding me, just like back there?" Yuuri's voice breaks, and Makkachin is whimpering anxiously at his side. 

The omega sniffles when he finishes, because as much as he doesn't want to think about it, that's exactly the situation he's gotten himself into. 

The scent of Viktor’s distress suddenly hooked into Yuuri’s nostrils, acrid and jarring, and he gasped. Shouldn't he be the one distressed with all that was going on? He sure was, indeed, if the smell of his own scent intermingling with the alpha's was anything to go by. But Viktor was different; his scent was nervous, anxious, but determined. 

"I said it before and I'll say it now." Viktor says, standing up from his place. "I won't let that happen to you. I'll do everything I can to keep you from that fate." 

The aroma of distress must have flipped the switch for him, too, because he was fast to take the omega into an embrace, tighter than the one from before. Yuuri hugged him back, content by the warmth that Viktor's body irradiated, better than any word he could muster. 

They stood huddled together for a long time without speaking. Makkachin trotted around them, much like she was checking up on both in case anything else happened. 

“I’m angry.” Yuuri slurs after a while, still tucked safely into Viktor's chest. 

“Angry?” 

“Yes, Viktor, I’m angry. I’m pissed that this happened to me,” he said, “Why me, I mean? I’m never getting those years back. I should have been worrying about college and settling into a home of my own, not about whether or not I was gonna die in a room in the middle of nowhere.” 

Viktor chuckled darkly, “I'm no professional, but I think you’re supposed to be angry. I’d be worried if you weren't.”

Another beat passed before Yuuri was ready to speak again. But the scent around him was so comforting...

"I'm sorry, Viktor. Really." he whispers. "It's just, everything's still a haze and…I can't stand the thought of  _going back_ , even if it's all in my head." 

He hears a deep, encouraging growl from Viktor, almost like a purr.

"It's no issue to me, I understand. And I'm thankful that you're being so open with me. But Yuuri, this could prove a problem to you, I don't want to keep triggering unwanted memories." 

"I'll be fine. I just need some time. It's no use just trying to block it all away, right?" 

Viktor smiled, letting out a sigh and nodding. "Just so you know, we have a while until the case starts going on full force once more. During that time, we'll focus on your well-being, okay? It'll be my first priority for as long as you stay here. How does that sound?" 

"It sounds like we'll have a lot to talk about in the meantime." Yuuri answered matter-of-factly. "But yeah, I'd like that. Thank you, Viktor, for everything." 

"Anything for you." 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the shortness of the chapter, but hopefully I'll manage to make the story flow a little smoother with the following chapters. It was important for me to show how Yuuri is coping with everything that's surrounding him, in case anyone wondered why he seems so calm with what's going on (he's not.)  
> I just need to sort out my ideas and we'll be fine.  
> Thank you for reading!  
> 


	15. Help

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a bitch to write.  
> It is possible that you'll cry. (I did)

No nightmares made themselves present that night, surprisingly. Maybe the reason was that Yuuri had been exhausted the day before, or maybe the smell and warmth of an alpha close to him helped keep the bad dreams at bay. Anyways, Viktor didn’t wake even once during the whole night, and when the first rays of sunshine filtered through the window, he found the omega tucked to his chest, hands coming up to grasp loosely at the shirt Viktor was wearing.

He was surprised at first, looking around to realize Makka had also found her way to the mess too, lying on top of one of Viktor’s leg while resting her head by the omega’s hip. Viktor didn’t want to move, partly because he didn’t want to wake everyone up yet, but also because he was still trying to think why Yuuri had gone so close to him during the night.

He’d helped the omega to bed after he’d taken a shower. Viktor still remembered the crying Yuuri had done when the warm water fell on his back, overwhelmed by how much he’d missed showering in the coldness of that place. He’d then told Viktor -who’d been patiently waiting for the omega to finish while sitting on the toilet with the shower curtain drawn closed- that the man had used a bucket to wash him. _A bucket_ , and cold water, most probably. He’d been furious then.

Fortunately, his anger had been masked by the fruity smell of the omega shampoo Viktor had left for when Yuri came to visit.

Then, Viktor had made some dinner with the foods that Dr. Keinn had recommended for Yuuri, and then gone straight to bed. The omega had chosen to stay in Viktor’s room, and while it took a while to decide if Viktor should stay on the floor -again- or go to the other room, Yuuri eventually asked the alpha to just sleep in the same bed. It was big enough for both of them and they wouldn’t even need to touch the other to be comfortable. So, each one had taken one end with Makkachin on the middle.

Yuuri had different plans, it seemed. He’d gone and curled himself by Viktor’s chest, much like a cat, and from the way his hands held the alpha’s shirt, it was obvious he wouldn’t move to be more comfortable. His face was inches away from Viktor’s, and while he thought the omega might be startled by the closeness, it was him who’d caused it in the first place. So, instead of moving away, Viktor stared.

Honestly, he though some people may not like the thought of others watching them sleep, but the alpha couldn’t stand the thought of Yuuri having a horrible nightmare and have no one for him to hold and cry onto their shoulders. Even this early in the morning, when the sun was already up and the darkness couldn’t hide the monsters anymore, Viktor felt the need to be there for him. Be someone to tell him that he’s are okay over and over again, until he finally believed it.

Yuuri didn’t even stir when he woke up. There was just a quick intake of air and then his eyes fluttered open. Viktor was startled when he found honey-brown eyes staring back at him from such a close distance. He was about to say something when he realized Yuuri hadn’t reacted at all.

He was just staring forward, eyelids half-open with a neutral look on his face. Maybe he hadn’t woken up completely yet, Viktor thought with a frown.

But then, the omega’s eyes shone with recognition. “Viktor?” he said, almost breathless.

“Hey, Yuuri. Are you here yet?” Viktor said with a smile.

But then, all of a sudden, Yuuri broke down sobbing.

The alpha was quick to get up and put some space between them in case that was what was bothering him, but was confused when Yuuri got up too, rubbing away the tears from his eyes. Makkachin was also woken with the commotion, and in a second she was next to the omega, licking at his face as if she could make everything better just by that.

And, apparently, it did. Yuuri was already smiling by the time the tears stopped falling, and he was energetically rubbing behind Makka’s ears to get her away from him. Viktor took that as his cue to reach forward, so he sat at the side of the bed facing them.

“Makkachin is the best comforter I’ve ever met.” He said softly, reaching out to rub at her back. “She really does help when I’m feeling sad or lonely.”

Yuuri didn’t look up, but nodded. “She’s really nice.”

“Yeah, she’s the best.” The alpha said. Then, he sighed. “I’m sorry if I was too close, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

After a second, Yuuri said, “It wasn’t about you. I’m not upset about you, I promise.”

“Then what’s wrong?”

His shoulders sagged.

“I just… didn’t expect to wake up here.” _I thought I’d be back in that room_ , was left unsaid, but Viktor’s heart hurt all the same. But then, Yuuri shook his head, like he noted the pain Viktor was in. “I’m- I’m actually really happy I did.”

“Oh. I see.” Viktor said, unable to think of anything else.

He was glad Yuuri felt safe with him, but that didn’t mean he’d be okay with what happened to him any time soon. Again, he’d spent three years captive, in an unknown place, with an unknown man talking to him in an unknown language. With no recollection of how much time passed, and no idea as to where he was being kept, such a dream-like state would confuse anyone. Even worse was the fact that he’d experienced a drop after his escape, so in reality, he’d just known he was free for a day and a half.

Viktor couldn’t expect him to be okay this soon. So, pressing the issue now didn’t seem like that much of a great idea.

“Why don’t we go and see what Dr. Keinn let you have for breakfast?”

Yuuri, too, was relieved to let the matter slide.

With a small smile, he said, “I’d like that.”

 

* * *

 

The unexpected ringing of Viktor’s phone made Yuuri drop the glass he’d been holding, splashing water all over the floor, and the loud crash made him even more skittish.

“Sorry!” he exclaimed, but before he could bend down and try to fix his mistake, Viktor patted his shoulder to stop him.

“It’s alright, don’t worry about it. We can clean it later, but don’t grab it with your bare hands, ok?” Yuuri nodded, biting his lower lip to keep himself from arguing. “I’ll get this call and then I’ll help you.”

Viktor grabbed the phone from the countertop he’d left it on before, and was surprised when he saw the caller ID on the screen. His first thought was why the hell he was calling, but then he mentally scolded himself. Of course he’d call! They were working together!

“Ignatieff?” he said, still not over his surprise, and he heard a chuckle from the other side.

“It’s Philip, Viktor. We’re not in court.” The other alpha said. Then, he added, “I was calling to know if our meeting for today is still in your plans? I feel like there’s a lot to talk about.”

Viktor gasped, taking the phone away from his ear and taking a quick glance at the date written on the top of the screen. It was Friday.

“Oh god, I completely forgot about it…” the regret seeped onto his voice, and Yuuri’s head shot up from where he was cleaning the glass to stare at him, even though he couldn’t have understood what Viktor was saying. He sighed. “Sorry, Philip, but I’m in a bit of trouble over here.”

“Ah, I’m aware your client woke up, and that your firm paid his bail. Is that what’s bothering you?”

Viktor winced at the amount of information the prosecutor could be managing.

“Yeah, it is. I can’t just leave him alone in here. But I know we need to meet up desperately.” He needed to tell him about Yuuri’s statement. There had to be a way to work it out if the prosecution also knew about it, even if it was just an evidence-less claim. “I’ll give it a thought, and I’ll call you, okay?”

“Alright. Let me know what you decide.”

He hung up and looked at Yuuri, who was still cleaning the mess he’d made before. Viktor walked towards him and then helped him mop away the water.

“Sorry, I forgot how suddenly loud cellphones could be.” He apologized once more, and the alpha smiled sadly.

“You wouldn’t guess how many times I’ve jumped out of my skin from it.” He added lightheartedly, smiling wider when Yuuri looked at him with amused eyes.

After the mess was already sorted out, they sat back down on the table, ready to finish their breakfast. As much as Viktor would have liked to give Yuuri every sweet and delicious food his kitchen had, he was aware that the omega wouldn’t be that used to normal food for a while, having been slightly malnourished from what Dr. Keinn had read from his exams. Still, he’d seemed content with having toasts with a bit of jam,

Since his portion was small compared to Viktor’s, he finished first. So, Yuuri was left fidgeting with a napkin, folding it and unfolding it with clumsy fingers, eyes stuck in the distance. When he noticed Viktor watching him, he sighed, knowing he’d been caught.

“That call…” he began, licking his lips as if it made it easier to form sentences. “Am I… in trouble?”

A beat passed before Viktor spoke again. “What makes you think that?”

“You kept glancing back at me. It looked like you were talking about me…”

Viktor put down the cup of coffee he was holding, resting his hands on the table.

“You’re not in trouble, Yuuri. If anything, I am.” He chuckled, “I forgot I’d arranged a meeting with the prosecutor to discuss your case, and while I know it’s important for me to go, now I don’t know if it’s a great idea to leave you alone in here.”

Yuuri seemed horrified. “But I won’t do-”

With the smell of distress, Viktor was quick to realize he’d phrased his thoughts much too bluntly.

“It’s not that!” He interrupted a little too harshly, making Yuuri flinch on his seat. Viktor winced at the sight, his inner alpha growing desperate. “It’s not about what you could do or not, it’s merely because the court doesn’t allow you to be by yourself for the duration of the case. It was in the conditions for the bail.”

With the speed of his rambling, he was surprised to realize Yuuri had caught what he’d tried to explain.

“Oh.” Yuuri simply breathed out, his shoulders sagging once he understood what he was being told.

It sometimes annoyed Viktor when people he dealt with had no idea of legal procedures. Mostly clients of his, being whiny and insufferable about every impossible idea they believed would save their case. It was amusing for him to realize that, although Yuuri obviously wasn’t as proficient in the matter as he’d expect, the alpha didn’t have any issue on explaining every piece of new information to him. Maybe it was the way the omega listened and took in every suggestion, like he knew for certain that Viktor would know what to do.

It made Viktor’s chest swell with pride to be trusted so much.

“I… I really don’t want to get in the way of your job.” Yuuri muttered cautiously, voice trailing away until he was mumbling. Viktor didn’t blame him; there was no point in pretending this was easy.

“Well, I could always ask someone to stay with you, because obviously Makka doesn’t count.” A part of his brain supplied that, maybe, if he showed some more confidence, then Yuuri would relax a little more. “I just don’t know who you could stay with.”

But suddenly, it occurred to him who could it be. Someone who had experience with treating with humans of diverse mind-states, who couldn’t be related to the case even if they tried, and wouldn’t be busy on a Friday afternoon.

“There is someone, actually…” but would it be a good idea? He grimaced, noting the straightforwardness of the person he had in mind wouldn’t be that much of a pair with Yuuri’s jumpiness.

After three years trapped in that room, with close to no human contact, maybe this person would be too much.

But it was his only chance if he wanted to go to that meeting.

Yuuri, noticing Viktor’s troubled face, quickly tried to compose himself, sitting straighter on the chair. He said, “I’ll be fine. If you trust that person, then so do I.”

And the alpha could swear he heard himself growl appreciatively at the statement. This blind trust was going to be the end of him -definitely not the shine on his eyes, nor the beautifully hopeful stare; or so he tried to tell himself.

Objectively, Viktor knew that what had happened had been a mistake. For Yuuri, trusting someone so much would be the cause of years of imprisonment, and he seemed to be able brush it off with ease -not notice it, even-, but Viktor couldn’t seem to it let go that effortlessly. There was a chance the omega was just so attached to him only because Viktor had been the first to provide a gentle touch and good food after such a long time.

The usual pity and sadness that he felt whenever he looked at the other man was now hopelessly entangled with a whole host of new emotion that he did not want to examine too closely, because Viktor was sure he was infatuated with how pure Yuuri was, but didn’t know if it was safe for the omega to have him as his only emotional support.

For the past days, he had considered telling Chris. With how well he’d taken Viktor’s situation, it was hard not to. He considered explaining everything to the other alpha and letting his friend help him sort through the mess of his own thoughts in the way that he had always been so good at.

Chris wouldn’t judge, the lawyer knew that. Presumably he would be very unhappy about what had happened -he was very emotional, and he had no trouble on showing it-, but he wouldn’t berate Yuuri for his story the way that Viktor knew anyone else would.

But somehow, Viktor just couldn’t bring himself to ask his friend to share the weight of Yuuri’s emotional mess. It would be good if he could help, but it wouldn’t go beyond that. And what Viktor desperately needed was someone who would share the responsibility.

It was hard enough to know what had happened to the omega, worse was to be the only one who could keep him away from his fears. Someone else had to be involved.

“I wanted to ask you about something,” Viktor said, after he spent a while considering his words.

A curious glance, and Yuuri said “Go ahead,” but his voice came out more strained than he wanted it to.

“Is your… family still around?” Viktor asked, eyes widening at the little whine that escaped Yuuri’s throat. It was a delicate matter, he noticed. Best to proceed slowly. “I wondered if you wanted me to do anything with them. I could call your parents and let them know that you’re okay. You said you didn’t know you were in Russia, right? That sounds a lot like they don’t know that either.”

His hands shook, and Viktor gulped. Had that been too much? Too straightforward?

The words had gathered in his head from the first moments he’d learned Yuuri had been nowhere to be seen. He endlessly wondered if there was a missing person’s report, or a family that missed this poor boy. The alpha had no luck looking up the name online, and without Yuuri’s input on the symbols used for his name, nothing had caught his attention. It was strange that there was no article on this Japanese omega’s disappearance, which would certainly mean that nobody thought this kid would be anywhere but Japan. Or, maybe, there was just no notice at all.

Whatever it was, Yuuri didn’t seem to be excited at the mention of his family, which left Viktor even more confused.

“Yuuri?”

The omega did whine loudly this time, the sound of distress overflowing Viktor’s senses with the need to comfort. Yuuri opened his mouth like he wanted to say something, but no other noise came. Slowly, Viktor stood up from his chair, eyes stuck on the omega’s body for any sign that told him he wasn’t wanted near.

But, instead of cowering away, Yuuri’s eyes followed the alpha’s movements until the other man was close enough for him to reach out. Viktor felt a prick in the back of his throat as he carefully moved close to the omega, watching his small, delicate hands trembling hesitantly under his gaze. He flinched at the sound of Yuuri’s sob, and sadly noticed the tears collecting on his long, dark eyelashes.

His alpha senses were flaring, releasing hormones into the room and flooding it with his scent. Mentioning his family was obviously a delicate topic for the omega, and as much as Viktor wanted to know _why,_ he couldn’t force Yuuri to talk.

And, all in all, Yuuri’s immediate needs came first.

He raised a hand and tucked it under the omega’s chin, raising his thumb to wipe away a lone tear sliding down his cheek. Yuuri bit his lip at the touch, as if he’d wanted to give in and bury his face on the comforting touch, but at the same time needed to resist it.

“Let me help you, honey.” Viktor purred deeply, throat reverberating with his sultry voice. The omega flinched into the touch, adverting his eyes away. Viktor growled painfully at the rejection.

The alpha felt all sorts of emotions seeing Yuuri looking so sad and… _helpless._ How the bastard that kept him locked up enjoyed seeing him like this and _smelling_ so much desperation coming from such a sweet person, was completely out of his mind. He felt upset because an omega was crying, annoyed because he’d been the one to cause it; but, worse of all, scared for him.

It wasn’t the fear that he was used to, when Yuuri couldn’t even voice his worries because he was too unstable to function. It was a cold, prickling terror that maybe the omega was way more damaged than what he could handle. Viktor wouldn’t leave him alone, no way in hell, and although his need to contact someone else to help him take care of the omega in his care, he couldn’t help but want to pick the small man up and hug him like a child, until all his worries went away.

Viktor tightened his hold on Yuuri’s chin, inviting him to look his way. The omega resisted the touch, but his eyes gazed into Viktor’s own ice-blue ones, and as his body slumped on the chair he was still curled up on, the alpha knew he’d been given permission to come closer.

Eyes never leaving honey-brown ones, Viktor carefully slid his arms under Yuuri and picked him up in his arms, to which he received no resistance. What’s more, the omega was quick to tuck himself into position, resting his head on the crook of Viktor’s neck, and moving his arms up to grasp weakly on the alpha’s shirt.

Again, Viktor was surprised at how easily the omega reacted. But he left the thought wander away from his mind as he heard Yuuri mumbling something under his breath, repeating it over and over again. He strained his ears to listen, but realized he didn’t recognize the language he was whispering on.

With the small, light body scooted tightly in his arms, Viktor slowly walked a few steps back towards the living room. Once there, he maneuvered both onto the bigger couch. To his surprise, Yuuri curled himself into a ball on Viktor’s chest, his head pressed just between the alpha’s right shoulder and neck, still sobbing and mumbling softly.

“I’m messing up again.” Viktor suddenly heard, taking him a while to realize that was actually what Yuuri had said in between his slurred mess.

Viktor held up the hand that had been resting on Yuuri’s lower back, and nestled it on top of his head, brushing soft, black strands of hair between his fingers. The omega hummed contentedly at the action, making Viktor’s chest rumble with pride.

“Really?” Viktor said softly, chuckling a little. “And here I thought I’d messed up, _again_.”

The sniffles subsided for a second as Viktor felt the hold on his shirt tightening. “I’m so sorry.” Yuuri panted between sobs. “But my family… I can’t help but think, and I can’t stand the thought of-”

A heart-wrecking sob interrupted him, and suddenly tremors were running through his back once more. Viktor’s hold tightened, head becoming a little clouded with his alpha instincts to _protect and cuddle_ until everything was okay once more.

“Yuuri” he tried, voice sultry and velvety once more. The shivering subsided with a final shudder, like the omega was holding his breath as he waited for whatever Viktor wanted to tell him. “What is it that is bothering you so much?”

Yuuri’s head slowly retreated from the tight embrace, and Viktor followed the movement with his hand, not wanting to stop his ministrations on the omega’s hair. Tear-stricken eyes gazed upwards, gathering courage.

“Do you…” the omega whispered, having trouble in voicing his thoughts. “Do you think… they’d want to see me?”

The question took Viktor a beat to ponder on, wondering why the omega had asked that. “I’m sure they do. I mean, you’ve been missing for years, from what you’ve told me.”

But Yuuri’s gaze dropped, and Viktor realized that wasn’t the answer he’d wanted to hear.

“I have a little brother.” Viktor blurted out, getting Yuuri’s attention once more. “He’s an omega, too, just over eighteen years old now, and has had a mate for a while now, of all things. He’s what society considers an adult; but to me, he’s still and will always be my baby brother.”

Pride seeped onto his voice, making him smile warmly as the corners of Yuuri’s mouth curved up. “And you wouldn’t believe it, but his name is Yuri, too!” he added, and the omega actually gasped in awe, letting out a short laugh after. However, Viktor’s face turned serious at the other thoughts that filled his mind, unconsciously clenching his fists. “If something were to happen to him, like what happened to you, I’d very much want to see him. Know at least that he’s alive. Hell, I’d never stop looking for him, not until I had answers. I’d never give up on him.”

If Yuuri didn’t sense the truth to his words, he didn’t know what else to say to convince him.

“What about your parents?” Yuuri timidly asked.

It made Viktor’s chest hurt for a second, as if a void had placed itself on his stomach. “My parents aren’t around anymore. It’s only been Yuri and I for a while.”

The omega’s face fell, and a regretful expression appeared on his features. “I’m sorry, I didn’t-”

“It’s alright. It was a long time ago.” Viktor cooed, trying to smile to ease the tension in the room. “But, you know what? I’m sure they’d feel the same way if something happened to either of us.”

“And what if-” his face wandered away again, to which Viktor had to move a little closer to get what was being said. Short, shy gazes were going and coming as his mouth gaped with unsaid words, making Viktor nervous until the omega finally seemed to settle. “What if, in all the time he went missing, he went and became a… a _murderer-_ Would you want to see him again, still?”

Viktor heard anger in those words. Anguish too; regret, even more. But Yuuri had that weird, conflicted expression on his face, like he wanted to start crying again, but was too enraged to do so. As if he’d wanted to punish himself for his actions. Like he still didn’t believe he had done nothing wrong, that he’d defended himself, that he’d _escaped_.

Fierce icy-blue eyes looked directly to Yuuri’s own, so intensely that the omega actually gasped at the pressure he was put under. Viktor grabbed onto his shoulders, a little tighter than necessary, knowing full well that the little display of strength would settle Yuuri down, like it did with his brother when he was like this. Too stubborn to give in, too bitter to consider.

A speck of fear brushed past Viktor’s nose, but it was all he received as a reaction, proving that Yuuri wasn’t actually afraid of him, just a little uneasy.

“You know what I’d do, Yuuri?” Viktor said, studying the hesitant shake of head that he received as an answer. “Well, first, I’d do this-”

With a jerky movement, he let go of Yuuri’s arms and wrapped his own around his small, lithe body, earning a startled yelp from the omega. “Then, I’d wrap him up real tight, like I’d never let go of him. And even though I know he hates them, I’d bathe him with kisses while tell him how much I love him over and over again,” Viktor crooned, mimicking his voice with the same actions. When he gave a kiss to the top of Yuuri’s head, he was delighted when the omega actually _purred,_ nuzzling further onto the embrace. The alpha’s chin rested on soft strands of hair, the smell of omega filling his nostrils. “and I’d tell him that I wouldn’t care if he had killed someone, because he’d be right there, in my arms, and I’d be so _happy_ to finally see him after all those years. I’d be overjoyed to know that he’s alive, and safe, and that I can finally tell him that I loved him.”

In one point, Yuuri had begun sobbing again, overwhelmed by the emotions Viktor conveyed on his speech. So the alpha hugged tighter, hoping that he could help Yuuri choose without the fear of being rejected by his family.

After a while, Yuuri finally disentangled himself from the embrace, looking up with a hopeful expression. “I know their phone number.” He whispered. “I used to recite it to pass the time, it helped me cope with the loneliness.”

The last part was something that escaped Yuuri's lips, and was not meant to be pondered on. Or at least, that was what Viktor took it for.

“You could call them, if you want. If not, I can try and contact them later this afternoon. It doesn’t have to be now.”

“I want you to call them. I… I don’t think I could hear their voice without-” Yuuri’s voice went higher, terribly close to tears once more.

“I can tell them the basics, Yuuri. If I let them know you’re with me, I’m sure they’ll want reasons.” After the omega’s nod, he smiled at him. “I’m sure they’ll be ecstatic to know you’re okay.”

He nodded again, more convinced this time, and shyly rested his head on Viktor’s chest once more, like testing the waters to know if it was okay for him to do so. When he felt the alpha’s arms coming up again to embrace him, he relaxed under the touch, sighing contentedly.

“Okay. Let’s do that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeyyy  
> Sorry for being so late, but I really wanted to get this chapter done, and I couldn't decide what to write that could go nicely with the story so far. So I gave you the fluff™ that Yuuri deserves.  
> Next up: Ignatieff and Viktor's appointment to get back on track to the case, and Chris and Yuuri's meeting.  
> Stay tuned!


	16. Meetings

Yuuri was fearing the moment the doorbell would ring. Not that much because he was meeting someone new, but from the nervousness that Viktor was showing. The usually calm alpha was pacing around the room with his notebook in hand, pen scribbling away with almost inhuman speed and mumbling to himself in a mix of Russian, English and some other languages that Yuuri couldn't even grasp.

Makkachin was at the omega's side on the couch, and he idly played with her tangled fur in an attempt to divert his worries somewhere else. But his eyes were locked on Viktor's, unable to stop his thoughts.

If Viktor was nervous, then something was wrong. Or uncertain, at least.

It unnerved him, thinking that, maybe, this _alpha_ \- as Viktor had told him almost wearily- would change his mentality of being safe around different types of alphas, as he wanted to believe. He remembered the other two he'd met after that man; Viktor's boss and that doctor, the nice one. He wasn't fond of comparing them to Denisovich - no, the man, he didn't want to think about his name-, but it kind of overjoyed him that these others were so nice in comparison.

In that room, he was forced to believe that all alphas could potentially hurt him. However, that thought had been gradually modified now that he was with Viktor. He was sweet, and so patient when Yuuri panicked. Strong yet gentle, not even subtly showing how much he cared for him. The omega was comfortable with him, but that could be about to change now.

The fact that Viktor wasn't telling him why he was so uneasy just worried him more.

Suddenly, the sound he feared chimed loudly, announcing someone's arrival. It bounced on the walls of the house, echoing around and into Yuuri's head. He let out a shaky breath.

It was time.

"That should be him," Viktor said, smiling obliviously at Yuuri and then standing to go and open the door. Makkachin jumped down from the couch and trotted over to her owner, also unaware of the turmoil that was inside Yuuri's head.

The noise of the door opening snapped him to attention, hands clenching involuntarily as he focused his sight past Viktor’s head.

Viktor greeted Chris warmly, and then wrapped him into a tight hug. He strained to be tall enough to hug Chris back properly, but managed as the other patted him on the back. All the while, Makkachin bounced and yipped around them.

The omega would have smiled at the display, but was too nervous to do so.

Yuuri gulped when the other man came into view. He could see Chris near the door from where he was staring on the couch; he was a little taller than Viktor, and with a more alpha-like build. Yuuri shivered at that, even though a look at his face told him this guy wasn't dangerous. He even seemed nice and funny, the type Yuuri would have gladly become friends with, but the omega couldn't concentrate on anything but his body, any gesture or posture that could mean he’d be hurt by him.

The blonde’s eyes went away from Viktor for a second, and their eyes met. Chris gave a small smile and a wave, but Yuuri couldn't move to greet him back. He swallowed deeply, anxiety already pooling at the bottom of his stomach. His hands clenched into fists, doing little to settle the urge to stand and flee from the room. That wouldn’t give a good impression, would it? But he didn’t need to give him a good impression, he just needed to feel safe, right?

It was at that moment that Viktor invited Chris inside, and now they were both approaching the spot where Yuuri was huddled in.

Yuuri just wanted to hide. Distantly he noted his scent changing, breaths now coming in short yet fast successions with how panicked he was feeling.

I have to calm down, he thought, trying his best to control his breathing. He couldn’t panic now, or he would become a burden to Viktor’s job. He had to go, whether Yuuri liked it or not. Besides, this man couldn’t be that bad, given he was Viktor’s friend, right? And he trusted Viktor, so it was fine.

It was okay, Yuuri told himself. Everything was going to be alright. Viktor would come back if anything happened, he’d be alright.

He looked up timidly, body tightening in fear as the two alphas stopped a few feet away from him, probably noting his skittishness. Yuuri had unconsciously brought his legs up the couch, and was currently hugging them close, making himself small. As much as he tried to relax, he could feel the gazes of the two other men bearing down on him.

Chris was sporting a bewildered expression on his features, with a mix of curiosity and pity that sent shivers down Yuuri’s spine. Even Makkachin appeared to notice how distressed Yuuri was feeling, coming up to the couch to nudge at his side with her nose. Viktor, however, had a somber look on his face, like he was already regretting his decision. He looked worried, and Yuuri had to force himself to let go of his legs, sitting up a little straighter. He didn’t want to worry Viktor even further.

Fortunately, the alpha quickly snapped out of it.

“Yuuri, this is Chris. He’ll be taking care of you today, alright?” Viktor said softly, and then, without looking away, he addressed his friend, “Chris, this is Yuuri.”

“Hello there, Yuuri. Nice finally meeting you.” Chris said with a lighthearted smile, as he slowly and carefully extended his arm out for a handshake. The omega stared at the offered hand, but the almost gentle gesture made him realize the alpha had purposely done it so that Yuuri wouldn’t get startled. He let out the breath he’d been holding, and smiled slightly, moving his own arm to where Chris’ was.

He felt a strong yet tender grip on his hand, one that didn’t force him to react back, like he wasn’t expecting Yuuri to do so. It loosened almost immediately, as if nothing had happened, yet the reassurance that this guy wanted the omega to be comfortable stayed there after they lost contact.

Chris sent a knowing smile his way, and then promptly retreated away from Yuuri’s space. The omega gasped when he caught sight of Viktor, who was staring at Chris dumbfounded. He seemed like he hadn’t expected Chris to act so gently, either.

Then, suddenly, Viktor snapped out of his reverie. “Damn, I should get going.” He said, looking at his wristwatch.

Chris snickered at his side, eyes leaving Yuuri’s to look at his friend. “Not forgetting anything, I hope?”

Desperate to busy his mind on something different, Yuuri strained to recognize the slight accent which Chris spoke with. It caught his attention on how soft his words were, and managed to catch a few syllables that sounded something like French. It was easy to understand him speak but, like Viktor’s accent, it urged him to listen.

“I should be back in a few hours” he heard Viktor say. He switched out of nowhere, voicing a few rapid sentences in what actually sounded like French. Then, the other alpha replied in the same language.

As much as Yuuri didn’t want to pry, he couldn’t help but listen to their conversation. He didn’t understand anything that was being said between the two, so he wasn’t exactly eavesdropping, right? Without the knowledge on what they were saying, he tuned out trying to deduce the words and focused on the sound of their voices. He unconsciously tilted his head to the side, lured in by the silkiness of their speech. Just how many different languages did Viktor know? Yuuri wondered as he listened.

"Take care good care of Yuuri, alright?" Viktor replied to the last of Chris’ questions in English, a worried smile on his lips. He reached an arm out and gripped Chris shoulder, giving it a little shake. "Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone," he said.

Chris smirked. "How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you."

Viktor laughed and let his arm drop back down at his side. He nodded at Chris, who gave a light, mocking salute as his friend backed away. Chris then turned to Yuuri and pointed toward the kitchen. "I'll be over there when you're ready, Yuuri," he said, and a puzzled Yuuri nodded, unaware of why he was being told that, and a little nervous that he’d finally be left alone.

When Chris walked away, Yuuri turned to Viktor for guidance, who was staring down at his shoes with a distant look in his eyes. Yuuri stepped toward him, understanding that he wanted the omega to go there.

As he reached Viktor, he raised his head a little to look at Yuuri. A hesitant hand -the one that wasn’t holding the briefcase the alpha had prepared earlier- lingered in the air by the omega’s arm, silently asking for permission.

Yuuri couldn’t hold his purr back, a throaty noise of consent that made Viktor’s eyes flare with pride, and the alpha wrapped his arms around his small body tightly. The omega responded immediately, wrapping his arms around Viktor as well and squeezing him hard, way more boldly now that the nervousness was eating him from inside.

"You’ll be fine, Yuuri. I trust Chris with my life," Viktor murmured against his hair.

"I know. He- he seems like a nice guy. But… please come back soon” Yuuri begged, and then promptly blushed at his directness.

And Viktor sighed against his hair, sending shivers down Yuuri’s back. "I’ll be back as soon as possible. I won’t leave you.” was all he said.

At those words, Yuuri stiffened considerably, a new thought plaguing his head.

It hadn’t even occurred to him that Viktor could leave indefinitely, and now the premise sounded like… like it could happen. What if someone came to take Yuuri away? What if Viktor was planning not to come back all along?

The omega felt Viktor pull back, and looked at him with wide, frightened eyes. Yuuri’s heart beat quickened considerably, tears prickling his eyes now that Viktor’s departure was so close.

But Viktor’s eyes told him something he hadn’t noticed before. He didn't want to leave Yuuri just as much as Yuuri didn't want him to leave. To the omega, Viktor’s presence kept the fear away, and not having him around meant that he wouldn’t get that sense of safety he needed so much.

Yuuri had proved himself to not know how to survive without Viktor by his side, the nightmares were too much to handle by himself, and the recurrent panic attacks only worsened if he didn’t have the alpha’s shoulder to cry onto. Viktor was his air and sun, his freedom, his safe haven; yet, surprisingly, the alpha was absolutely terrified to leave Yuuri behind, too.

"I'll come back to you, I swear," he said, icy-blue eyes shining with determination. "And if you need anything at all, go to Chris. He'll take care of you while I'm gone, Yuuri, I promise," he told him, and Yuuri nodded.

"Okay," Yuuri said, because he didn't trust his voice enough to say anything else. His eyes had started to well up with tears again, but he wanted to stay strong for Viktor, so that he could go do his job with no distractions.

“Okay.” Yuuri whispered to himself once more, unable to speak at a full volume as he watched Viktor collect his stuff and start toward the door. Just as he was about to step out of the house, he turned to look back at Yuuri one last time.

“Take care, you two.” He said finally, and opened the door.

As Yuuri stood there watching him leave, Chris snuck up and stood beside him. Yuuri didn't look over at him though, he was busy staring at the now closed door, waiting for the sound of the car starting.

The engine of the car was finally heard, and then the sound started moving away from the house. Yuuri closed his eyes to concentrate on the noise, until he couldn’t hear it anymore.

The omega stood and watched the door for a long time. Viktor's face was long gone, but Yuuri couldn't move from where he was standing. He didn't know he had started crying again until he felt Chris's hand grab his and squeeze tightly.

He chased the warmth with his own hand, but it was a poor substitute to what he craved.

 

* * *

 

Driving away from the house almost broke Viktor's heart. He hadn't expected to be so troubled when parting from Yuuri, but now there was a bone-deep ache that he couldn't get rid of, and it was getting worse the farther he drove.

He tried taking long deep breaths while driving to settle his worries, but Viktor wasn't even sure what he was worrying so much about. Yuuri would be fine, Chris was taking care of him. And if anything happened, he would only be a phone call away from them.

In the end, he chose to ignore the feeling. The best way he could help Yuuri was by doing his job.

They were supposed to meet at Ignatieff's office by two in the afternoon so, after getting his dose of caffeine for the day and pondering on whether to bring a coffee for the other lawyer too, Viktor found himself knocking on an expensive-looking door with the prosecutor's name written on a golden plaque. It wasn't long before the door was opened, and the scent of alpha masked by odor blockers reached his nose.

"Hey, glad you could make it." Ignatieff said, offering his hand to Viktor, who shook it courtly. "Had any trouble on the way?"

"Not at all. It was a pretty hard place to miss." Viktor answered truthfully. Then, he raised his hand and showed the paper bag he was carrying. "I brought you something. Didn't know if you'd be the type to like caramel on coffee, though, so I settled for a good old cappuccino for you."

Philip chuckled. "That's perfect. Here, come in, there's a lot to discuss."

He walked into the office, following the other lawyer towards a glass table set up in the middle of the room. While sitting and arranging his files, Viktor took notice of his surroundings. Being honest with himself, it was everything he'd hope to have once he'd got an office of his own; a massive and authoritative desk with a large, imposing leather chair tucked towards one end of the room, with bookshelves full of old law books, legal files and folders -all neatly arranged and with no specks of dust on them- and wide-open windows towards the street.

The only piece of decoration that seemed out of place was a handmade frame on top of the desk, made of something like foam with a little too much glitter on it, and a family picture put into it. But really, it was too adorable to not put it somewhere.

It was an office that showed power, success, and while Viktor was used to having his desk covered in legal pads and file folders -and often more papers than what he got the time to read- it didn't have the same glamour as this.

In a place like this, he wouldn't have to worry about his co-workers all around him, with the exact same predicament, all sharing one common room. Yakov had always said that, as he rose through the ranks, the room he used as a study would get smaller and smaller, until he'd get something that he could call his own, but that hadn't happened yet. And Viktor would be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to this.

"Alright," he heard Ignatieff say, snapping his attention back to the task at hand. The other lawyer was looking at him expectantly. "Want me to begin or...? Figured you might have been busy with your client at home and all."

"Ah, yes," Viktor said, taking out his preferred notebook out of his briefcase to start taking notes. He read over some of the last ideas he'd written, and then hummed. "I reviewed some of the evidence we had already gone over and found some stuff we might have looked over, but I'd prefer if we start with some undiscussed info first."

He still didn't want to tell the other lawyer about Yuuri's statement; he wasn't convinced enough.

"Yeah, thought so too." Ignatieff answered, going to grab one folder he'd left lying on the table. He also put on a pair of glasses that Viktor had never seen him wear before, and set to work. "Okay, so I recently got most of the neighbor’s statements about anything that could come up as weird regarding Denisovich. All said the usual; reserved old man, rarely took part in any social gathering, but caused no trouble to any of the people living nearby. The car in the front entrance, the one with the camera, it moved once a month when the man had to restock his pantry."

Well, at least they'd started off with something he was well acquainted with.

"The recordings?" Viktor asked, raising his head from his notes.

"All according to the statements. Only showed the man going to and coming from a store nearby. Workers there all knew each other, and yes, they only saw him once a month. They referred to him as the "can man", ‘cause he only bought canned food. He was pretty well-known there."

Viktor nodded. "No other surprising videos?"

"None. He usually kept the curtains shut. We were lucky he forgot to close them when all of this happened."

Something tingled his neck at that, but Viktor bit his lower lip to avoid saying anything. Was it really luck? He didn't think so. He wrote it down and underlined it so he could get back to it later.

"So, back to the neighbors. The man paid one of the neighbor's son, a beta, to cut the grass when it got too tall." Philip huffed indignantly. "But when I got to him, guess what happened."

Viktor chuckled. "Underage?"

"You got it. Always poise quite a challenge." He took a first, tentative sip of the coffee Viktor had brought and hummed. "This is good. So anyways, parents stopped me from having a proper conversation with this kid. In the end, though, he came forward and told me some stuff he'd found weird on this guy."

"Wait, how old was this kid again?" Viktor interrupted, only raising his sight when Philip didn't answer right away.

He was just looking at him, puzzled. "Sixteen. Needed the money to go out with his friends. Why could that matter?"

"Hmm, nothing in particular. Just wanted to know if it'd be proper to rely on his statement."

"Well, it's not that relevant. But the kid did say this man was very keen on watching his every step when he was around." Philip shrugged and took another sip when Viktor shot him a look. "Probably just to make sure he did a good job, but it unnerved the kid to have him staring all the time."

A cold shiver ran through Viktor's back, his hand stopping his writing for a second as he took in this new information. Almost as if he didn't want someone near the house, he noted, quickly scribbling it down in dark ink. Then, almost like a spasm, he went back a few pages in rapid movements, scanning for something he had written that day at the hospital, when Yuuri started telling his story.

There! The year Yuuri said he'd gone missing. Three years ago, he'd said.

"Ignatieff," Viktor said, to which he heard the other mutter _Philip_ , followed by an indignant huff. Viktor rolled his eyes and ignored it. "For how long had that kid worked for Denisovich?"

"Uh, around three, four years."

"And for how long had he been noticing Denisovich staring?"

"For real?" Ignatieff asked, a little surprised. With the look of determination on Viktor's face, he receded. "I'm not going to lie, I'm spooked you'd ask just that"

"You know or...?"

An obviously proud nod. Then, he said. "About a year after he'd begun."

It matched Yuuri's story, and Viktor didn't know if he should feel glad or terrified by its implication.

"Am I allowed to ask why?"

Viktor raised his head minutely, but then shook his head. "Later. Still need to check some other stuff."

Ignatieff nodded slowly, with one of his eyebrows rising over the rim of his glasses. But he let the matter slid, at least eventually.

"In the end, no other weird occurrences with the neighbors. Now, I ran into an issue here that needs to be addressed in court for a following meeting." He said gravely.

"And that is?"

"The neighbors all tell the same story." Ignatieff said. But before Viktor could ask, he grabbed some files and passed them across the table. "Take a look for yourself."

Viktor took hold of the papers, laying them all down next to each other to study them. Ignatieff's elegant handwriting was messy at parts, making it seem like it was made rushing. "Are these transcripts from your conversations?"

A nod. "Always fancied working on paper than digital. Stuff's easier to see."

"Agreed." Viktor said absentmindedly, running his gaze through the texts, finding some particular phrases and descriptions that did seem to match each other pretty well. But he didn't understand what Ignatieff's point was; the statements were supposed to match, after all.

A quick read wasn't enough to grasp anything of importance, just the usual story he was used to hear; neighbors heard the gun going off, called the police and then ran to see what had happened. All were at their houses, they perceived nothing being wrong in the neighborhood. So, when the police came in to catch the burglar...

Wait a minute.

"We've never said this was burglary. Not at court, at the least." Viktor stated, as he reread statement after statement, pausing every time the encountered either the term or the implication that the omega had been inside the house to steal from the old man. If he squinted a little, Viktor could realize that their stories were somewhat shaped to fit into a theft and, as they still hadn't clarified the case as such, it was all untrue.

"Some even claimed they'd heard weird noises during the night, as if someone had been checking their houses from the outside." Ignatieff claimed when he noticed Viktor's discomfort.

"But that wouldn't make any sense anyways." Viktor said. "The scene occurred in the middle of the afternoon, not at night!"

"Well, guess who has been treating this as burglary and making their own assumptions."

That said, Ignatieff passed another bunch of papers to Viktor. This time, they were newspaper cuts from different stories regarding the case. Viktor grimaced when he read some of them, all very obviously incriminating Yuuri and heroizing Denisovich as much as they could -it was the reason why he hadn't checked the media in all this time-, but he could understand what Ignatieff was referring to.

"They're being influenced by the media. The neighbors, our only witnesses. Fuck."

"We took too long to take their statements, but the police do have some preliminary ones that we could use instead." Ignatieff said. "However, with what's happening, I believe we'd be better off filing an injunction to silence the press. Opinion papers, at the least. The public has a right to know the facts, but we can't do if the media starts biasing our witnesses."

Viktor's eyes widened at the suggestion, very quickly realizing that Ignatieff would be the one more negatively affected by it. Most of his support came from the press anyways, and people loved hearing all about the case of the decade. If they took that away, then he'd only be left with the facts to defend himself. Everyone had their opinions already, it wasn't as if that would change; however, the media would stop making those worse than they already were.

He had nothing against it, but was surprised at how necessary it was for Ignatieff to have his case as unbiased as possible. It showed what a good prosecutor he was; untainted by the promise of money, oblivious to the fame and prestige of winning the case. He only wanted justice for the man he believed to have been unfairly murdered. Ignatieff wanted to know the truth, just as everyone else, but he was in no means going to impose his view over others.

Viktor's chest swelled with admiration.

"Alright, I agree with that." he said, to which Ignatieff nodded.

"With that cleared, we can move on to more urgent matters."

Viktor then drank from his own cup of coffee, realizing he'd let it sit for a bit too long. He turned the page from his notebook and looked up again, waiting for Ignatieff to continue.

"Denisovich's family is still mourning, so the little I got from them might not be all that useful." But it sounded interesting, Viktor thought. "Again, pretty much the usual stuff. Calm man, not mingling into anyone's business, adamant to go to a retirement home. He had two beta daughters and an alpha son; all in their forties, all living here in St. Petersburg. A couple grandchildren too, but they didn't know him too well to cooperate. They mentioned he had never been the same after his wife passed away, but they'd never seen him act violently at all."

Ah, Viktor remembered the son. A spitting image of his father, same dynamic and all. He remembered how he'd assaulted Yuuri that day at court, how he'd punched the omega in the face with blind rage. Yuuri still winced when he accidentally touched his nose, completely unaware of what had happened to him. Viktor still hadn't got to tell him everything that had happened while he was unconscious.

And to think the omega's eyes had seen just another Denisovich stalking charging towards him in his drop-induced state, like his nightmare was real once more...

"Speaking of which..." Viktor suddenly said, "What happened to the son?"

Ignatieff sighed, cautiously muttering his next words. "Court left him go with a fine for a public-order offense."

"Only that?" Viktor spat, picturing the scene again, remembering how terrified Yuuri had been.  "Over assault?"

"Don't know the specific reason why, but I'm not against him being released that easily." Ignatieff added, unbothered by Viktor's reaction. It angered him even more that the other lawyer was so calm about it, but the prosecutor was quick to explain himself. "Just think about it. The man was mourning his father's death, enraged that he was taken away from him earlier. To be honest, I can sympathize with him. After all, I probably would have done the same."

"Assault someone in custody and expect to get away with it?"

"Punch my father's murderer and get some revenge from it, as little as it is." he said, as if it was obvious.

Viktor's shoulders sagged in defeat. He couldn't argue against that; it would be hypocritical to say he hadn't wanted to do the same with the drunk driver that killed his own parents.

"Okay, yeah. I get your point." Reluctantly, but he did.

Ignatieff nodded, looking pointedly at him. "So, in conclusion, the family didn't know much. I asked for weird actions or behaviors, but again, they just said he was a lonely man."

Viktor wasn't keen on continuing with the other topic, so with a deep sigh, he gladly accepted the change. "Family meetings?"

Ignatieff nodded and said, "They did, once in a while. Twice a month to be exact, they met up to have dinner on one of the daughter's houses."

"And visits? To his home in Lipedrov?"

"The son said he visited frequently."

"Hmm."

Yuuri had said he hadn't been kept at the house, so maybe that information wasn't at all relevant to what he wanted to prove. Still, on a corner of one particular page in his notebook, Viktor had written what Yuuri had mentioned once. _Taken home during the winter_ ; it meant he did stay in the house for at least a couple weeks, and if his deduction was correct, then maybe he'd heard the son come visit.

What worried him about that statement was that the police weren't able to find any evidence of the omega being in the house. The man could have cleaned it, though, but there was something still missing for Viktor to be sure.

"So that's it?"

"For now it is, yeah." Ignatieff said, taking one final sip from his coffee. "Man, that was some good coffee."

Viktor took a deep breath, now concentrating on the files sprawled all around him.

It was his turn to speak.

His notebook was in his hand, page after page filled with the information Yuuri had provided, details of the case, own deductions, thoughts and predictions. It was full of data that he'd collected through the week, and different marks served for connections and coincidences, too messy for him to properly underline them.

But it was all there. The dialogues, dates; everything that could help to prove Yuuri of his innocence was there, yet at the same time wasn't. Not without tangible evidence, not without finding blood or restraints or the trace of Yuuri's scent in some dark room. If they didn't have that, then there was no proof at all, the information was useless by itself.

Here was the opportunity to tell Ignatieff about it, but Viktor could not avail himself to do it. It seemed all incomplete now, like the last week meant nothing, not even worth revealing. The prosecutor was a seasoned lawyer, and Viktor had faith that he'd understand. But with what happened with Yakov -the way he brushed him off after being told about Yuuri's condition back at the hospital- Viktor wasn't sure of what would Ignatieff say.

All in all, he was nervous, and the ambient in the room suddenly felt tense. Viktor could sniff some of his emotions lingering in the air around them, and with a gulp he realized Ignatieff had noticed it too. He raised his eyebrows questioningly, expression morphing from one of confusion to almost worry as he eyed Viktor.

"Hey, you alright?" he asked, taking off his glasses and leaving them on the table. It was funny, almost as if he'd taken them off to signal he was done with his part of the job.

Viktor didn't dare looking away. Instead, he took a deep breath and straightened himself. An alpha like him shouldn't be this nervous about something so simple.

"I'm okay. Just…need to think how I'll break this info to you."

Another surprised stare edged itself on Ignatieff's features, which gave Viktor enough to decide his terms. He had to give this information; it was vital if he wanted to win Yuuri's case and finally save him from some of his nightmares, at the very least.

Viktor cleared his throat, eyes locked with his court enemy.

"Okay, so you're aware my client woke up, right?"

"Right?" Ignatieff answered, pitch raising towards the end, urging Viktor to keep talking.

"And that he's staying with me for the past two days?"

He didn't give a vocal answer this time. Instead, he kept looking at Viktor like he'd gone mad.

Viktor didn't even flinch, and kept talking when he received no response. "He's out of the drop, that you know. The withdrawal symptoms seem to have passed, too. Which means he's conscious right now."

"Can't you just cut the chase and get to your point? Viktor, we need to keep going."

"No, this is important." Viktor said stubbornly. "Because I have his side of the story already."

This time, Ignatieff did seem to react a little more wildly. His eyes opened a little wider, fingers flinched for a split second, like he was expecting to hear something like that but not quite so.

"What did he say?" he asked, and to Viktor it sounded eager, curious, a tinge of desperation on his tone.

And then, Viktor let a phrase brush past his lips, sharp words imbedding themselves on Ignatieff's ears, hunting his mind with how precise they were.

"He says he wasn't at Denisovich's house by pure coincidence. He says he was held captive by him, for more than three years until that day."

The words lingered in the room for a while longer, getting lost inside the books that surrounded them until the terrible declaration couldn't be heard anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri is scared.  
> Viktor wants to make it better.  
> I'm sorry for the slow burn but it needs to be done.  
> Thank you so much for reading!


	17. Issues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Being busy makes it reeeeally difficult to write consistently. (Sorry)  
> And I had to cut this chapter short if I wanted to have anything to share this week. The next chapter is already organized, and I just need to write it, so hopefully the wait won't be as long as before.  
> Anyhow, It's Chris' turn to shine :D
> 
> EDIT: Holy crow, 1000 kudos and almost 15k hits already.  
> Thank you so much for your support! :D

It didn't come as a surprise when Ignatieff demanded some kind of explanation. He didn't talk, didn't make any different expression than the astonished one he'd made when first told the news, but Viktor knew. It was actually because of the silence, realizing pretty early in the case that the prosecutor wasn't one to become speechless easily.

"Now, I know it sounds wild, but please hear me out." Viktor went a few pages back on his notebook until he reached the mark he'd made when Yuuri had woken up. From there up to a few pages in, Viktor had written all of the information Yuuri gave him, and at the same time linked it to the evidence the police station had provided.

He looked at it for a brief time, finally taking the notebook away from his sight as he handed it to Ignatieff. "That's the data I've recollected for the past three days." He said, as the other prosecutor snapped out of his trance and took hold of it. "So, what happens is that my client's statement actually fits to all the story we've managed to discover. Now, take a look at the first page."

Ignatieff moved his gaze from Viktor's face to the notebook, following the orders almost blindly. Viktor repressed the urge to smirk; he had the prosecutor hooked.

"His name is Yuuri Katsuki, omega, twenty-four years old now, grew and was born in Japan. Taken three years ago, kept in a place unknown to everyone but Denisovich, who he claims abused physically, psychologically and sexually of him." Ignatieff's breath hitched the same time Viktor's voice did. He had to bit his lip to repress any other sound that would escape his mouth, but the thought of Yuuri's face when he told him… He had to focus! "The beginning was a mystery until now, right? We know how this accident happened and when it happened, but no context. Yuuri says it wasn't just coincidence he was in the house at the time. Go to the next page."

Again, the rustle of paper against paper echoed in the mostly silent room. Viktor took the opportunity to ground himself and organize his train of thoughts.

"He got into the house because Denisovich carried him there. He says was feeling bad; couldn't move his limbs, head hurt too much, barely enough energy to stay awake. And when the man went to him, he realized Yuuri was in no shape to take part of whatever he had planned on doing to him. So, he carried Yuuri to the house so he could treat him from whatever was happening. Army doctor, remember?"

An almost unnoticeable nod later, Viktor took another deep breath and continued, sharp as ever.

"We know Yuuri had a drug withdrawal a few days ago, of some unknown substance. However, what I found weird was that he'd recover so easily from it. A day and a half at the hospital, at most, and the four days prior to that, which he spent in omega-space. Drug withdrawal symptoms must have begun showing way before that, and here's the trick that supports his story with some tangible evidence."

"He was having symptoms then..." Ignatieff murmured in a breathy voice. "But the drugs..."

"Read a little bit lower from the third paragraph." Viktor said. Then, he repeated what he had written there. "He says he was force-fed pills of some sort. Made him feel weird, and I quote, he _didn’t have any more strength to fight after he forced them down his throat. Always figured they were just sedatives._ Here are the medical exams he was subjected to."

Another folder was passed over the table, and Viktor allowed himself to pause and observe Ignatieff while he read.

"Some type of benzos, the doctors concluded. Plus, a dislocated shoulder, evidence of once broken bones, among some bruises and cuts that we thought were the result of his escape from the house, the ones on his feet. Some were, but the others are too old to have been caused by that. Remember why we couldn't figure out why he was barefoot when they caught him?"

It was then when Ignatieff snapped out of his reverie, finally coming to terms with at least some of what Viktor was telling him. His eyes got back some of the shine they'd lost in the last minutes, and his face sharpened once more into his professional facade.

"The kid cutting the grass?"

"Denisovich probably kept an eye out for him, you know, in case they discovered whatever he was hiding." Viktor responded easily.

"I was thinking it was all about the bear traps." he said suddenly, but Viktor went unfazed.

"Suppose he was keeping something hidden, and put the traps to prevent anybody from coming into contact with it. Now imagine; kid gets trapped into one of them, Denisovich has to give explanations for keeping bear traps in plain sight. And I looked it up the other day. There are no bears in the area, so that's no valid excuse."

Ignatieff's mouth shut so fast the clicking of his teeth was heard.

A minute went past in complete silence, until Ignatieff talked again.

He said, "What did he say about the…you know, the accident?" and Viktor had to resist the urge to smirk. His tone was still different, it was what told Viktor that he was trying to make sense of what was going on, but was smitten to know more.

"He doesn't remember much. He knows what happened and, uh, what he did. But as I said, he wasn't feeling great, so it's all pretty blurry for him."

Ignatieff was incredulous about it all. Baffled, out of his mind. He had that look on his face that Viktor knew so well now; gaze lost into the distance, head to busy trying to make sense of it all to consciously control it. Viktor was aware he had the other lawyer right where he wanted, but his shoulders were still tight with expectation for the doubts that were sure to arise.

With a deep sigh, Ignatieff brought his hands to his head, mouth bobbing open and closed without coming to terms with what to say. In the end, he huffed out in resignation.

"I don't even know what to say" he muttered, shaking his head. "I mean, all of this information…I just- How?"

The smell in the room was that of a faint, worrisome desperation. A need to understand, to know what was going on.

"We never knew the other side of the story." Viktor answered solemnly. "We assumed too much. Threw this omega into a cell, not even bothering to take a more thorough look, and don't get me started on providing some medical care, even when we knew he was in a compromising situation. We let all of that slide, and now the truth is too much."

"Not just _too much_ " it was close to a shout, and Ignatieff visually slumped in his chair at his own outburst. "It's all so…convenient! That's what I can't get into my head."

Viktor stared at him. "What do you mean?"

"I just went over all of this evidence on the table, and then you tell me this story and it all just fits perfectly!" Ignatieff said. "Every detail, every single blind spot. And god, it sounds terrible and I feel terribly sorry for what your client went through. _If_ he's telling the truth, that is. How do you expect me to believe all of this, Viktor?"

The lawyer resisted the urge to back down when he heard the words that he'd feared hearing. It was prone to happen, really, because Ignatieff was great at his job and he was known to take everything in with a critical eye.

"Look, you haven't been working on this field for long." Ignatieff interrupted his thoughts. "Yet you're the closest to a prodigy I've had the pleasure to see in court, Viktor, and I admire what you do. Your deductions are always perfectly supported by the evidence, and they're top level. Way better than what I'd expect to hear from someone with decades of experience. But you mistepped into this case by letting your own feelings get in the way; trusting the first person that gave this madness some sense, that is."

Viktor didn't even modify his posture. He kept the same sharp gaze, terse posture, hunched-back shoulders. He wouldn't accept any comments until he finished speaking.

"I understand your worry." He said, solemnly. "And I also understand your distrust. I'm not even sure myself if what Yuuri told me is true, but I want to believe him." He gazed down for a second. "I know I have been too involved, and yet I have this feeling that I need to get to the bottom of this, whatever the truth is."

"You chose to trust him." For a second, the twist on Ignatieff's mouth made him look almost disgusted.

"I trust my clients." Viktor retorted harshly. "And not just for what I've seen on him, but from the sole coincidence of it all. Had he prepared all of this scheme beforehand, there would still be blank spots. Yet there are none. And he has spent most of the discovery process unconscious, so there was no way for him to make his story out of the info we already discussed."

As he finished, Viktor was suddenly nervous. He could still sniff some of his emotions lingering in the air around them, and his shoulders were stiff and beginning to cramp. Ignatieff had been pretty straightforward at pointing out one of the major flaws in Viktor's case, and now the lawyer was uncertain whether the prosecutor would let him continue supporting his stance.

Viktor needed to tell him about the omega, even if he disposed the theory without giving it much of a thought. Now, it seemed way more important than he thought it would be. Ignatieff had to take Yuuri's statement into account, or else he'd have no way to support his arguments on court.

At last, he seemed to come to a decision.

"Alright." Ignatieff agreed, his demeanor suddenly changing to a more serious one. "I know you want to help this guy, but I insist: we need to be cautious on how we treat the evidence."

Viktor was so happy he wanted to cheer and laugh and hug Ignatieff, all at the same time, but he refrained from doing so. It would have made a funny picture though, he thought.

Instead, he got back to work.

"We still don't have all the info on this case that I'd like to have; the place Yuuri was kept in, for example." Viktor said in a way that closely resembled a closing statement he'd use at court. "What I expected from this was to take my client's story as a mean to proceed with the case, so that we don't keep revolving around unknown territory."

"We need his statement recorded, then. Set a date for depositions. If we're using this, then let's make it official." Ignatieff said hastily, like he wanted the matter to be sorted out as fast as possible. But then, his eyes softened. "Think your client is up for it?"

Viktor understood the sudden change of demeanor of the prosecutor, and felt his own shoulders drop in gladness. At least Ignatieff was taking Yuuri's mental state seriously, even if he didn't deem it completely true.

"He'll be alright. Though I might need some time to prepare him."

"Good. Best to get this settled soon." Ignatieff nodded. "Now that that’s done, let's talk dates."

 

* * *

 

Yuuri was currently trying to come up with something to say while Chris awkwardly flipped through the channels in the television. His heart was in his throat, a mangle of nerves impeding the coming of his voice. Not even his mind was able to provide with some meaningless chatter to fill the silence.

It hadn't been this hard with Viktor, or had it? It had been him who was constantly providing menial conversation, one that wasn't difficult for Yuuri to follow given his years of isolation. Some comments about the food, about his workplace, some about his brother -who got Yuuri confused many times because, surprisingly, they had the same name- and so on. And with him, the silence never got as uncomfortable as it was now.

Yuuri knew he could trust Chris, and he wasn't afraid of the man. Just wary, a little nervous too, but it wasn't fear. Something about the alpha made him appear way less menacing that Yuuri would have imagined if they had met in different circumstances. The way his fingers flexed when he pressed a button to change channels, the hand that was absentmindedly petting Makka's fur, the feet he'd brought to rest on top of the sofa - it was nothing out of the ordinary, but for some reason the small gestures of uneasiness made Yuuri's own nerves settle.

Until a chime made Yuuri almost jump away from his seat, that is.

The initial fright was soon replaced by curiosity as Chris looked around the room to locate the source of the noise -another dammed cellphone- because the ringtone playing was one that Yuuri recognized. A song, specifically, and while the lyrics had long gone missing from Yuuri's brain, the melody was too familiar to forget.

Chris finally found the device after patting all the pockets his clothes had, and then moving on to the jacket he'd left draped on the back of the sofa. With a quick look to the lightened screen, he swiftly slid his finger across it and the song turned off.

Then, the alpha turned an apologetic smile towards Yuuri. "Sorry, I forgot I had an alarm set." he said, shortly noticing the expression on Yuuri's face.

"That song..." he murmured, not without wincing a little at how rasp his voice sounded. "It's, uh-"

"You know it?" Chris asked, back straightening a little at the chance to finally share some words with the mysterious omega. Yuuri nodded timidly. "It's a little old, but I really liked it when it came out. Has been my tone for alarms since forever, or else I wouldn't get things done."

He fiddled with his phone again, tapping his fingers on the screen until the song began playing once more. The melody of it played over the noise of the TV, and Yuuri found himself mentally humming it as it played.

"It was really popular when I-" disappeared, went missing? He decided to change what he was going to say. "I had a routine for that song."

Chris' eyes widened.

"A routine? You dance?"

Another tiny nod. "I danced, yeah. But it was a routine for skating." At Chris' amazed gasp, Yuuri smiled a little, cheeks turning a soft shade of pink.

"Wow," Chris said. "You're an artist too, huh?"

"Not exactly an artist, I don't think I could be called that. My teacher had another term for it. It translates as _performer_ , I think?"

"Hmm." he said. "Well, I believe every person who uses their unique talents to amaze the public is an artist, on their own beautiful way."

Yuuri did chuckle this time. This alpha was a lot like his dance teacher back in Japan, and the familiarity was really comforting to him. Minako-sensei would love meeting this guy, he thought. The sudden memory of the woman made him smile sadly, and he found himself wondering if he'd ever get to see her again.

"I don't think I could be called an artist anymore, though." Yuuri commented out loud, his head going over the thought of his teacher reprimanding him for not keeping his body in proper condition during training. And now he looked at himself, and saw skinny, muscle-less arms and legs, not even enough to keep him standing upright for more than ten minutes. "Haven't stepped in a rink in _years_."

What would Minako-sensei say if she saw him like this?

The melancholy hit Yuuri on full force, suddenly feeling sad for not thinking about skating back at that place he was kept in. He had barely even considered it, his thoughts mostly directed to his family and the fear of seeing that man again. But Viktor did say he was going to contact them, right?

Maybe he would have some answers - _if_ they wanted anything to do with him after they _knew_.

Yuuri suddenly noticed he'd been silent for too long, and when he raised his gaze to Chris' face, he met a pair of questioning green eyes.

"You don't seem like the type to abandon an activity they notoriously enjoy." he stated, making Yuuri flinch. "Why did you stop practicing?"

Could it be…he really didn't know?

"I, um-" he stammered, intently studying Chris' reactions. "Viktor didn't tell you?"

Chris' features softened a little, and then there was a pause, but it wasn’t as uncomfortable as Yuuri would have expected. Then, the alpha shook his head.

“Do you want to tell me about it?”

“Guess I kinda have to, huh?” Yuuri mumbled.

His hands were already starting to tremble with anxiety.

“Not if you don’t want to,” Chris replied earnestly. "I only want you to be comfortable."

Chris already liked the dynamic Yuuri had with Viktor, and by default liked Yuuri as a person, but thought mentioning that might be too forward given that they barely knew each other.

Yuuri started feeling that lump in his throat again. He bit his lower lip to stop himself from whimpering in distress, but his attempts to cover up his pheromones was futile. Makka cried from her spot on the couch next to Chris, raising her head to see what was going on.

Through clenched teeth, Yuuri said, "I don't want to tell you, but at the same time feel like I _need_ to-" He let out a desperate sound. "I know Viktor trusts you, but I just _can't_."

Yuuri had moved past embarrassment and sat hunched on the couch, knees raised to his chest and hands fidgeting with his clothes. Defeated.

Both men sat like that for a while, lost in thought, finding comfort in each other's close presence. Yuuri rubbed his eyes and tried to stop his tears from coming again. His mind had become quite persistent in its demand to cry, but he fought it with all his might. He'd already cried enough.

“Does this happen often?” Chris asked suddenly, and Yuuri raised his head in confusion.

"What does?"

The alpha smiled softly.

"The feeling that you can't put your thoughts into words." He answered, as a matter of fact. Yuuri just stared, equally confused and surprised at Chris' statement.

With a defeated sigh, Yuuri said. "It's been hard, with all that's been going on. I feel like there's so many things in my head, I don't even know what to think of it all."

Chris smiled again.

"Things aren't always what they seem, Yuuri," He continued. "And who knows, maybe sometimes things happen for a reason. Viktor chose your case, and at first, I thought it was because of his dammed sense of justice. However, I do know now that Viktor cares about you... a lot, if I must add." Chris chose his words carefully. "He took a huge risk when he took your case. Apparently, he was willing to take that risk for you, and I can't help thinking there must be a reason for that. Personally, I'd like to know why Viktor decided you needed his help, but at the same time I feel like I already know the answer. "

Chris' heart clenched when she saw a lone tear slide down a freshly scrubbed cheek. Yuuri wiped it away, like it offended him to be crying, _again_.

"I tried," Yuuri's voice was soft, almost inaudible, and Chris had to strain himself to hear the words that were laced with a mixture of pain, sadness and frustration. "To believe him," Yuuri continued, rubbing his tired eyes. "But I never could. I was...angry... so incredibly angry and hurt, but, for some reason, I could never get myself to believe him. Instead, I think I became afraid."

"Until?" Chris spoke, knowing he was right when he saw Yuuri nod.

"Until he brought me here, after the hospital," he whispered. "You have no idea how many times I imagined what it would be to… get out." Chris visibly misunderstood what Yuuri meant with that, but he stayed silent. He knew Yuuri was trying to come to terms with his own problems, and there was no right for him to pry. "The things I would do first, the people who I'd embrace again. But...when I came here, _when I realized I was out_ …It became too much."

Yuuri sighed and tried to blink away the tears that were stinging the back of his eyes.

"And then with the whole case thing. Viktor said he'd do whatever it takes to help me, but I still can't believe everything will be alright in the end. Not completely."

Yuuri swallowed hard and shook his head. He still couldn't believe the onslaught of emotions his unexpected freedom had awakened, and putting it into words was harder than he could have imagined. "I'm angry at what happened to me." he ended in a whisper. "And now, now I'm just confused at what's going on around me and that makes me afraid. Viktor says I don't deserve that. After what I went through, he says. But I still think I deserve whatever punishment law has planned for me."

"Why do you think that, Yuuri?" Chris said in a calm voice.

"Because I k-killed a man." He stuttered out. "And it doesn't matter there was a reason to it. It is wrong. It is so w-wrong."

Yuuri had felt guilty when he remembered what had happened, back at the hospital when he first woke up. After the happiness and gladness knowing he was finally free, the guilt had knocked him out of it all. But Viktor's response to his words had pushed those feelings to the background because, for the first time in years, Yuuri really felt like giving up his thoughts and beliefs -everything he didn't let the man reach, back in that dark room- to trust this alpha.

As if sensing the need to take Yuuri away from his own head, Chris intervened.

"May I share a story with you?" He asked softly. "It's something that happened a long time ago, when I met Viktor."

The pensive, almost brooding expression in Chris' eyes made Yuuri curious. He didn't have anything to lose, and was thankful for the distraction, so he nodded, and Chris began.

"Viktor Nikiforov is one of the most attractive people I'd ever met," he said, with a soft smile that ignited a light in his eyes. "Boys and girls, alphas, betas and omegas were quite taken with him, which was one of the reasons why I ignored him at first," he chuckled. "He knows he is good-looking and he's always used that in his job. But I didn't meet him by chance. He was my lawyer too. I was one of his first cases, he said. Fresh out of college."

Yuuri's eyes widened. "You were…What?"

 Chris grinned. "His client. For quite a while, actually."

"What happened?" he was almost afraid to ask.

"I'm a photographer, and my line of work takes me to different countries. At that time, I was in Russia." The omega nodded, urging him to continue while honey-brown eyes sparkled with interest. "Well, to cut things short, I managed to get tangled in some dirty business, and ended up unknowingly taking pictures of a murder scene. Someone saw me doing it, and assumed I had something to do with it." Chris sounded offended, but Yuuri knew it was only mockery from his part. "So, I was thrown into a cell for about a week, until Viktor came and got me out of there. It was hilarious, if I think about it now."

Yuuri swallowed deeply, his eyes glued to Chris'. "Did you…He got you out?"

The alpha nodded, almost smugly. "He got me out, and surprisingly saved my arse too. He even went as far as to discover who the real culprit was." he sighed. "Damn, he would have made a fine detective. I have no idea why he'd choose law, out of all things."

Yuuri really wanted to ask how, against all odds, had Viktor managed to keep Chris from jail. However, he knew it wasn't the time. Yet, Chris looked like he still had stuff to tell, so he kept quiet.

"So anyways, it's not news to you that we used to date, right?" there was no mockery in his tone. He was dead serious again. Yuuri hadn't known, but he had noticed the way they talked about each other. It was obvious they had more going on than just friendship, so in the end, he nodded. "Since I worked as a photographer, I was on the road a lot. Anyway, one Friday evening I came home to Russia after having spent a week on the road. I had been worried about him, because it was winter and Russia had seen a lot of severe weather, including a few pretty violent blizzards. But there I was, knocking on the door because I'd lost the keys, but it never opened up. He was -still is, I believe- the type to leave spares hidden under pots, so there wasn't that much of a problem getting into the house. Yet it took a day and a half for Viktor to show his face around. In all his handsome glory, he appeared two mornings later. Viktor Nikiforov always looked good in a suit, but I wasn't really pleased with the black eye"

Chris paused and cast a look at Yuuri, who was staring at him with wide, unbelieving eyes.

"A black eye?" he echoed. "You mean...? Viktor? Really?"

"You bet," Chris nodded. "Oh, when I confronted him, he confessed right away, telling me immediately all about this case he got into; a family losing their home against an abusive father -the black eye was supposedly his fault- who wanted to keep the kids with him, or something of the sort. He was very apologetic and all for forgetting I'd come home that day, but I was too angry with him. Not a single call or text message in a week." Chris sent Yuuri a small smile. "We'd been dating for around a year, and it wasn't the first time he'd gotten so endorsed in his job that I'd vanished from his present and future plans. I couldn't keep up with that."

"But you seem like such good friends now," Yuuri concluded. "You broke up, because of that?"

"Yes. Because I loved him, still do, but as friends." Chris answered softly. "Even though I was extremely upset with him, I knew I'd always regret it if I kept him away from something he loved so much, all just so I would give him, us, a second chance. So, after a couple of months or so, Viktor and I had a long, air-cleansing talk. We ended our relationship right there, and parted our own ways."

Yuuri shot Chris a shy glance.

"How... did you cope?"

"I was pretty sad for a few months," Chris said, with all honesty. "But, as time went by, I started to see him smile more, because in all his actions he always showed me how much he loved and appreciated his job. And I, too, found a different approach in my photography. It was like I had a different perspective; I learned to look away from the flashy things, and instead focus on the beauty of dull and usually boring themes. It changed us for the better, and I regret nothing."

The silence between them felt suddenly thin, flimsy as tissue paper. Yuuri's eyes shone through it as it stretched between them, and when Chris finally broke it, his voice was as soft as silk.

"I won't tell you what to do or what not to do, Yuuri," he said, resting his hands back on Makka's fur. "I just wanted you to know that, from my own personal experience, following your heart can be a risk that could be well worth it in the end."

Yuuri opened his mouth to say something- to ask a question that placed itself in his mind and refused to let go- but the words were too small to mean anything at a moment like this and the silence was too fragile. He could think of nothing meaningful enough to break it.

But something strange in Chris' face -a flicker of understanding, perhaps? he couldn't really remember what it was-, urged him to ask anyways.

"And if I can't get to-" Yuuri started. "What if I can't trust myself to make the right decision?"

"Then trust Viktor. He might not be the best at relationships, but one thing he aces at, is doing his job right. He'll know what to do."

It did make sense, actually. The reassurance the answer brought was enough to make Yuuri's chest feel warm. If he couldn't trust himself, he could rely on Viktor to do the right thing.

"Now," Chris suddenly said, making Yuuri focus on him once more. "How about I tell you about the time Viktor drunkenly asked Makkachin to drive him home?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, sorry this chapter was cut short, but 4.8k words in a week seemed like a bit too much for my exhausted brain.  
> Next up! The long-awaited call to Yuuri's family, and a little more development to Viktor and Yuuri's relationship.  
> Thank you so much for reading!


	18. The call

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The long awaited call is here.  
> Prepare the tissues.

Viktor slumped through the door feeling exhausted, but accomplished. He could feel how spent his mind and bones were, and his eyes itched with every blink. Yet it was…nice, somehow, because he'd managed to get rid of a huge weight on his shoulders by telling Ignatieff what he'd been keeping mostly to himself.

Maybe the prosecutor hadn't been as open as Viktor would have wanted, but the matter would be taken as a legitimate statement once the depositions were made. It was as good as it could get.

However, Viktor was so out of it, that his mind could barely keep up with whatever he was doing. And that's how he found himself stumbling towards the living room, when a strange sound registered in his ears.

For once, Makka was nowhere to be seen, and that by itself was weird. Chris' deep voice could be heard from the living room, and Yuuri should-

Was that…Yuuri?

Driven by pure curiosity and barely any common sense, Viktor marched inside his house without even thinking about taking his muddied shoes off or hanging his coat at the door. His senses were overwhelmed with the need to know what was going on with the omega, because the sound was so…unique, but at the same time familiar; he couldn't put a name to it. High pitched yet melodic, with an enticing vibrancy that left Viktor mesmerized.

And then the room went into view, his eyes falling on the scene taking place there. Chris was lying lazily on the bigger sofa, Makkachin beside him, a can of beer in his hand while the other moved wildly in front of him to accompany the story he was in the middle of telling.

Viktor's eyes then caught sight of something that almost blinded him. His suspicions had been right, but at the same time, it was nowhere near what he had visualized.

The sound was indeed coming from Yuuri, but for a second Viktor didn't know if what made the sound so special were his shiny, sparkling honey-brown eyes, or maybe the creases that formed when his nose wrinkled upwards. Viktor's senses could only focus on his laughter for what felt like an eternity; all of it radiated so much emotion that the alpha was baffled to no end.

It was something so simple, to see someone laugh. However, to see Yuuri laugh was similar to getting punched in the face -it was the only thing Viktor could think of when he tried describing it.

It was such an enrapturing sight that Viktor barely caught a glimpse of the flinch and consequent widening of eyes when Yuuri saw him standing in the doorway. He almost seemed frightened, but only for a second, because the next, he was standing and staggering towards Viktor, as if he couldn't believe the alpha was actually there.

"Viktor!" he heard, Yuuri's voice laced with surprise as he marched towards him, and Viktor couldn't help the smile that formed on his lips.

He stretched his arms just in time for Yuuri to launch himself to his chest, his head going for the crook of Viktor's neck and taking a long, deep breath in. Viktor pressed him close tightly, his hands roaming on the omega's back, feeling every tense muscle tremble as they relaxed under his touch.

Yuuri chanted his name under his breath, like he hadn't been expecting him to come back. The thought left a trail of sadness in Viktor's chest; he hadn't taken long, three hours at most. But they were three hours Yuuri probably spent thinking about his return, much like a frightened puppy who was being left alone for the first time.

The metaphor was sickeningly accurate, Viktor thought.

Yet as his nostrils caught the scent of the omega in his arms -fear, panic, anguish, a mild fruity aroma from the shampoo- Viktor realized this was the first time he'd been left alone after he woke up. The thought of being abandoned had crossed Yuuri's mind, against his logical judgement, and it hurt Viktor to the core.

"I'm home, Yuuri." he said, barely a whisper, accompanied with a subtle growl that had Yuuri mewling contently.

Viktor almost expected Yuuri to cry, given the strong emotions he was displaying with his gestures. Hands tightly clutching the back of Viktor's jacket, nose desperately scenting his neck, chest pressed flush to Viktor's; it was admirable to think he'd been so withdrawn from human contact with other people. Yet again, Viktor was special for some reason.

The hug lasted a long time, and it was only when Viktor noticed Chris' gaze on them that he made a move to split from the omega. The other alpha had a mix of smugness, his usual sassiness and delight plastered on his features at the display, like he knew something the other two didn't. Viktor didn't give it much thought, and instead pushed back a little to stare into Yuuri's eyes.

"Are you alright?" He asked, searching for any sign of discomfort that he could help him with, but found none.

A small smile, as dazzling as before, danced in Yuuri's lips as he nodded. "I'm glad you're back." he said, voice trembling towards the end.

"I'm glad to be back," said Viktor, smiling back at him.

"Oh, would you take a look at the two of you! Quite a sight you make, huh?"

It was as long as Chris could take of being ignored.

Yuuri blushed a soft shade of pink when he released his hold on the alpha's shirt, and Viktor smiled fondly at him. "What were you two up to while I was out?"

It was Chris who answered, while Yuuri stared somewhere else with a smile on his lips. "Oh, you know me, just the usual chat. Nothing major."

He mentally winced, already aware of what they must have probably talked about. With Chris as an interlocutor, it was hard for him to keep quiet about his embarrassing feats.

If it made Yuuri this happy, though, he couldn't be mad.

"The fact I know you is the reason why I know you're lying." Viktor said, lacing his voice with sarcasm while watching Yuuri trying to keep his laughter at bay. "But your faces tell me you'll keep your mouths shut, right?"

The other two shared a glance, and Chris said, "Yup. What was said in this room stays in this room. Oh, and with Makka."

As if on cue, Makkachin barked from her spot on the couch. Viktor smiled fondly once more.

"Oh, come here you beast" Following her owner's command, the dog jumped off the couch, her tail wagging happily behind her as she lunged towards the alpha's open arms. "Yeah, yeah. Hello to you too, Makka."

He did a whole spectacle of lifting her up in the air while she yipped, and then tickled her tummy vigorously once she fell on her back. Her fur was as mess down there, all tangled and dirty from when she ventured into the pond of a nearby park a few weekends back. She needed a bath, Viktor thought, still fighting off her attempts to lick at his face.

Out of the corner of his vision he could see Chris taking a few steps back and leaning onto the couch -the beer on his hand once more- to stare at the scene. Yuuri stayed close, and Viktor could almost _feel_ his sparkly eyes on his back, eager to join the fun.

Once Makka had enough, Viktor stood up.

"How was work?" Chris prompted while Viktor straightened his clothes.

"Exhausting." He answered truthfully, "but rewarding. We have a strong starting point now that the prosecutor is informed of Yuuri's input on the case."

To that, Yuuri paled a little. "You mean...?"

"He knows now," Viktor answered with a nod, and then flashed a reassuring smile towards the once again nervous omega. "and he took it well. Hopefully things will start flowing more smoothly now."

It wasn't something they would have to worry about for a couple days, at the least. Depositions would be made once Viktor was sure Yuuri was ready for them, and while he didn't want to wait much, he had to take his time easing the omega into them. It was, in his opinion, the most critical part of a case as hard as this one.

Now, however, there was one last thing he had to take care of.

"Would you mind waiting here for a bit longer? I need to make a phone call real quick."

At Yuuri's gasp and flinch, Viktor knew the omega knew what this was about. The look of almost betrayal Yuuri sent his way was enough to replace the happiness with a cold, sour bitterness of anguish.

Still, Yuuri had to ask. "Is that… _that_ call?" he said, voice trembling with renewed fear.

Viktor could only nod courtly, to which the omega whined low on his throat. Chris was switching his glare between the two of them with wide eyes at their sudden change of demeanor. With Yuuri's reaction, he was already worried about what was going on without even knowing what it was.

As Viktor noticed Yuuri was biting his lower lip -something the omega would always do when afraid- he sighed. "I'm sure it'll be alright, Yuuri. We talked about it yesterday, remember?"

Yuuri looked away, but nodded.

"It will all go well. I promise." But he didn't know that, it wasn't certain at all, and the alpha saw the way Yuuri's body seized with yet another flinch, like he wanted to scream at Viktor to stop lying.

But he didn't. Instead, he kept quiet, and Viktor didn't know if he preferred this over the other outcome.

The alpha spared a quick glance to Chris, and the other nodded, reassuring Viktor that he'd keep an eye on the omega.

Without further due, Viktor slipped away to the bedroom so he could spare the other two of the unexpected. He had no idea how this could end.

 

* * *

 

The number did connect to a registered phone, and that by itself was a small victory for the alpha. It meant Yuuri's family would still be around, somewhere.

The constant beeping sound while he waited for someone on the other side to pick up the phone was maddening, to say the least; he'd never been good with these types of things. Viktor was one to prefer face-to-face communication over any other form, mainly because he had full control of the situation. He was good at reading people, and could almost always steer the conversation to whatever destination he wanted just by pushing the correct buttons.

Calls -and calls as important as this, to be specific- terrified him a little.

The beeping suddenly stopped, and someone lifted the phone on the other end.

This was it.

" _Moshi moshi, Katsuki-desu_ " It was the voice of a woman who answered, and suddenly Viktor felt the need to punch himself in the face.

He didn't know any Japanese to speak to this person! How was he supposed to communicate with Yuuri's family if he couldn't even understand a word they were saying?

He really should have thought this better.

" _Moshi moshi?_ " he heard again, his nerves spiking.

Ah, damn it all.

"Hello? Is this the Katsuki residence?"

For a couple seconds, the line was in silence. But then, the woman spoke again.

"No English" she said, with a prominent Japanese accent. Though it was obvious she was trying hard to make her words understandable. "Little words, um, wait please!"

Before Viktor was able to say anything else, there was rustling again and, a moment later, he heard the woman talking away from the phone. Then, another voice joined her -a male, this time- and conversed with her in rapid Japanese over the still connected line.

All the while, Viktor was becoming more and more nervous, and found himself wondering if he should have written a script or something. How was he going to break the news to these people?

His thoughts were cut short when someone else took the phone on the other side.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

Viktor gasped in surprise at the perfectly understandable voice. "Ah! Yes! Good afternoon." he said, before he realized it probably wasn't the same time in Japan. "Is this the Katsuki residence?"

"Yes, it is. We've just switched places with Hiroko-san here, since her English is a little limited. There has been an incredible interest on this phone number from scammers lately, so I sure hope this isn't something of the sort."

The man -he couldn't be that old. Early twenties or so? - sounded like he was smiling, which managed to calm Viktor's nerves a little. "Oh, no. My name's Viktor Nikiforov, I'm calling from Russia." There was an exclamation from the other side of the phone, and Viktor tried hard not to cringe at how awkward he was being. "I'm sorry, but I must ask. Are you in any way related to the Katsuki's?"

It was a bold way to ask, and Viktor knew it would be difficult to disclose this information if he didn't have this guy to translate to the family. But Yuuri's privacy was also something he had to take into account.

After Viktor heard a few phrases in Japanese -not directed to him, of course, but someone near him-, the other guy answered. "I'm not related to them by blood. But I'm a close friend, if it works for you? Hiroko-san, er, Katsuki Hiroko-san said it was okay for me to listen." he said, and then promptly added, "Oh, my manners! I'm Phichit Chulanot by the way!"

That…didn't sound Japanese at all, Viktor thought. But Phichit had indeed made this call a thousand times easier already, so who was he to question that?

"Alright, so… There's something else I need to ask first. "

Now, Viktor faced another wall in his head, just now realizing he had to break it to them one way or the other that he had Yuuri in his care. Truth be told, he had never been good at this type of things. His forte was to recite facts and evidence of the most gruesome kind without batting an eye, but now that he needed to be gentle, nothing came to mind.

When he imagined himself on the other side of the phone, he would have liked the information to be shared directly, without further emotional nonsense in between crude words. But he couldn't do that to them, not when it was such a delicate matter.

At the same time, though, he couldn't keep them waiting much longer.

"Is this…Katsuki Yuuri's home?"

There was a cold, dead silence that went for way longer than what Viktor would have expected. Each minute that passed led to a deeper, heavier breath, and the alpha was inclined to think the line had been disconnected somehow.

It was almost a minute when Viktor finally heard a reply.

"Don't you think it's enough?"

The alpha frowned, startled by the sudden bitterness.

"I'm sorry?"

"To lose a son, a friend, with no clues at all? You think it's okay to call and torment this family, asking about their missing son, to make matters worse?" Phichit's voice was trembling with anger and pain, laced with such fury that a shiver ran through Viktor's back. He had sounded like such an easygoing guy just seconds ago! But he hadn't finished yet. "It's been three years, Viktor Nikiforov! Why can't you guys just leave the Katsuki's alone once and for all! They don't need you reminding them of their loss every couple weeks only so you can satisfy your morbid curiosity. So good fucking afternoon to you, mister Nikiforov."

"No! Wait!" Viktor exclaimed before Phichit could end the call.

Yet the sound of the phone being hung didn't come, and Viktor was once again frozen on the spot as he listened the murmurs on the other side of the line as the woman intervened again. The alpha could barely distinguish syllables, much less the words, but the tone on her voice was…heartbreaking, to say the least. It was as if she were drowning in grief, and Viktor wanted nothing more than to reach through the phone and give the woman a hug. He couldn't even picture what she looked like, but her voice was enough to let him know this woman was deeply scarred for what had happened to Yuuri.

He had the sneaking suspicion this was Yuuri's mother. The desire to hug her only grew stronger.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Phichit's stern voice was heard through the speaker.

"Talk." he courtly said. "Hiroko-san wants to hear what you have to say."

Tears were on the verge of falling when Viktor decided to say what he had to say, once and for all.

"Yuuri Katsuki is with me. I'm calling on his behalf to tell you he's alright."

He knew he could have said something different, but with how eager Phichit was to just hang the phone, he had to go to the point.

"What-" he heard, almost a whisper. "What did you say?"

"We found Yuuri last week, and he's currently under my care."

"How could you…Where- No..." Phichit said in disbelief. "Please don't fuck with me."

The woman was speaking desperately by the phone, but Phichit didn't spare her the translation.

"Describe him. Tell me what he looks like. His favorite food, his favorite animal, anything at all."

"I'm afraid I don't know much about him, but he-" an exasperated sigh escaped his lips, mind reeling with a way to make himself believable, but he complied. It was the best he could do to not fall off the tightrope. "He's omega, for starters. Dark hair, honey-brown eyes. Medium height, uh, and that's kind of it. Um, I don't know what he likes to eat..." he should probably ask that, anyways. "but he loves dogs. He said he had one when he was little. Um... Vicchan! Yes! He was a poodle, like Makka, but you probably don't know who that is." Still no answer from the other side, so Viktor kept rambling. "He has a really pretty smile, but he doesn't do that often. And he does this thing when he's nervous…He bites his lips and..."

"hug himself..." Phichit interrupted, his short input high-pitched and wobbly. He was crying. "He hugs himself and stare at the floor, not making eye contact so no-one can tell he's anxious; though he fails spectacularly at that."

A sudden relief settled a warmth in Viktor's chest. "Yes, he does that."

An ugly-sounding sniff, and then Phichit spoke again with a tremoring voice. "That's our Yuuri…It is really him, Hiroko-san!"

The translation flashed through Viktor's ear in between ugly sobs and high-pitched whines, and soon, Hiroko-san was crying too. Another pair of voices joined the conversation, then, and he heard Phichit repeating the information once more, as unintelligibly as before.

Viktor leaned against the wall, waiting for the family to calm down on their own and briefly wondered about how much he'd have to pay for a call this long.

"Hello? Mister Nikiforov?"

"Yes, I'm still here." he answered, and received a sigh as an answer.

"Oh, good. I thought..." Phichit stopped speaking to take a deep breath, and then said, "I'm sorry for what I said earlier, but I…I thought-"

"Hey, it's alright. I understand my choice of words wasn't the best."

Phichit chuckled a little. "You're on speaker now, if you don't mind. But uh, the others wanted to hear too." The rest of the family, it seemed. "Please, tell us what's going on with Yuuri."

It sounded so pitiful in contrast to how furious Phichit had been before...

"Listen, Phichit, I'm more than certain you're anxious to know what happened. But it is something bad, and talking from my professional point of view, I'm not sure how well you guys can take it."

"Yuuri wouldn't disappear without a trace just because" Phichit answered, "We all assumed it would be something bad. But please, Viktor, it's been three years. We need to know what happened to him! Wait, he is there, right? Can we speak to him?"

"I'm afraid not. Because of the nature of his disappearance, he has some issues about contacting you personally. But for that reason, he asked me to contact you and tell you he's alright." Viktor carded a hand through his hair. "I'm not planning on keeping anything from you, but I thought I might warn you."

"We need to know." Phichit said sternly, not giving Viktor any choice in the matter. "Please tell us everything you know."

And so, he began.

His words now flowed like a river, composed, serene, almost emotionless. It was as much as he could do to keep his own voice from breaking at the wails and cries he heard from the other side of the phone. Phichit too, tried to keep a confident voice as he translated, but more often than not his voice would be interrupted by a sob, or a high-pitched whine that forced Viktor to stop talking for a second, until he knew he wouldn't overwhelm the guy with new information.

He soon learned there were four distinct voices coming from the other end, only appearing to mutter what Viktor expected to be curses and long, heartbreaking cries; yet they never asked questions, never interrupted Phichit to comment anything at all. Only listened to the painful story.

Viktor told them about his relationship to Yuuri; how he, as his lawyer, was doing his best to untangle this mess. He told them about how he'd found Yuuri, how he knew this wasn't a case to be taken lightly. They cried through the retelling of their emergency visit to the hospital all the way to the minute the omega had woken up. When Viktor finally got to the crude part, he had to tell it slowly and, to his own grief, repeat some parts to a disbelieving Phichit.

" _Three years_. And we thought he was _dead_ ," he had said, voice trembling with emotion and renewed fury. "while he suffered with that- that _bastard_."

The rest of the family didn't hear the translation of that.

Towards the end, Viktor's own face was damp with tears. He couldn't help them, not with a whole family crying because of him. When he finally told them about Yuuri's uncertainty of contacting them -about his fears of being rejected for doing what was right- there was the struggle for the phone on the other side. And then, clear as air, Hiroko-san's voice registered on Viktor's ears.

"Tell Yuuri, love him." she said "My baby boy safe, I happy."

"I'll tell him, ma'am" Viktor said, barely holding back a new set of tears from those simple yet meaningful words. "I'll be sure to make him know."

The phone was once again passed to Phichit after that.

"You sound awfully more like a superhero than a lawyer, Viktor Nikiforov."

It was hard not to chuckle through the knot on his throat at the joke. "I must say I'm flattered, though it's not really like that. I'm just doing what I can."

"Oh, don't be humble now." Phichit chuckled too, and then sniffed a couple times. "If I may ask, what happens now? How will you keep Yuuri from jail?"

"Well, that's a matter that has to be settled by the judicial system over here." Viktor responded, serious once again. "What I'm trying to do is lay all of our info for everyone to see, and start the following court procedure in the assumption that Yuuri was indeed being held captive by this man."

"Why won't they just leave it be, though? Shouldn't they just accept Yuuri's say and get it over with?" Ah, Phichit. If it just were as easy as that...

"Because the case was treated as a second-degree murder since the beginning, and it has been proved Yuuri was the reason why this man is dead. It's not a matter of proving Yuuri's innocence now, but rather a justification of his actions."

"Oh."

He didn't sound like he understood all of it, but Phichit didn't push for more answers. There were murmurs from the other side, and Phichit translated what they'd just talked about.

The call then steered towards its end as Viktor and Phichit exchanged contact information so that they could be informed of what was happening. The promise to keep in touch was a huge relief for both parts, and Viktor presented the possibility to have Yuuri on the phone on another occasion. Now he could tell the omega about his family's acceptance, and he was sure Yuuri would be eager to hear from them after so long.

"Hey Viktor?"

He barely missed the words.

"What is it?"

"Please take care of Yuuri. Please, hug him lots and…Oh! Cook him katsudon!"

His voice was suddenly cheerful once more, and Viktor frowned at the foreign word.

"Katsudon?"

"Pork-cutlet bowl, it's his favorite! He used to eat that every time we celebrated, I'm sure he misses it..."

For his sake, Viktor didn't mention that Yuuri was severely underweight and was under a strict diet. But he made a mental note to check with Dr. Keinn; anything to make Yuuri happy.

 "Will do, Phichit. I promise I'll keep him safe."

"Tell him we love him, no matter what." Phichit said, voice trembling again. "Oh, and Viktor?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

And the line went dead.

Only then did Viktor allow himself to take a deep breath, and then let it out ever-so-slowly.

One more thing to cross out of the to-do list.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One again, I didn't realize how much I had written for the call scene, so the chapter was cut short from what I originally thought is would be.  
> Yet don't fret, the case will be taking form again soon.  
> Thank you for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Check out my newly created tumblr!  
> https://royalchrod.tumblr.com/  
> I uploaded some fanart for this fanfic, hope you enjoy it!


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